Through Blind Eyes
by notlolilaughed
Summary: Having these blind eyes are heavy burdens. The only thing they ever let me do is cry.. I do a lot of that these days..I'm told it'll change though...if I hold up to my end of the bargain that is..[Major Toph&Aang] Chap 6 updated
1. Chapter I : Unseen Sights Pt 1

…**Through Blind Eyes…**

…**Chapter I…**

"**Unseen Sights Pt 1"**

Among the sky, there was but one color that starless night – a color of complete, flat black, obviously not an ordinary black; the entire sky that night seemed painted with the darkest black one could ever see, starless, looming, and perhaps even an ounce dull. It was one of those trivial yet quite possessing things that mortals or (perhaps more appropriately called) men would never forget – neither magnificently attractive or heinously repulsive as mortals are prone to judge. Perhaps it was between. Amazing. A possessing fantasia of but one color, entirely dominating the worldly canvas that veils the majestic heavens from common men like you and me.

And underneath it? – underneath there was a little girl, aged of twelve, that would never care for it because the only color that she knew and had ever seen before was just that – black. Nothing knew or particularly astonishing. Twelve long years of one color can make one feel that way. She never knew the difference between green, blue, orange and the entire spectrum of colors – no, there was no concept of color for her, pitch black seemed to be all she knew of the world beyond the vibrations that she used to "see".

"Aang?"

The girl moved around restlessly – there was no impact from her friend's feet that her fifth sense could tell…and her sense was usually extremely accurate. In fact, there seemed to be absolutely no vibrations from anybody nearby.

"Katara?"

Surely, they had to have gone somewhere… but where..? It was an impossibility for humans to entirely dissipate just like that. Growing a little more worried than usual, the girl began to jog around the vicinity when no response resounded back. She felt alone – she was alone…pitch black alone…

"Sokka?"

Desperate to know where her friends could have gone, the little girl started sprinting. No vibrations around – no life. Where was she at…? And during that process of thinking, she felt a small vibration locally. Allowing herself an exhalation of relief, she pointed her feet toward whoever stood evident in front of her. Yet whoever decided to show themselves certainly denied a voice. Tragic. She'd gladly be mute rather than blind. Being blind…well…sure it doubtlessly molded her into an entire different person rather she was "normal" – a better sense of hearing…a unique fighting style…but proportionally, there was tons to sacrifice also. She could only imagine what the colors of the rainbow looked like…

"Hello? Are you there?"

A rather timid voice came to speak up – a child's voice. His feet shook upon the ground, evidently scared. Perhaps…perhaps he had strayed path from his original mother.

"Yes"

A simple reply to a simple question. The girl seemed quite relieved of another life – weirded out by the absence of her other three friends.

"Have you seen my friend Aang? Or Katara? Or Sokka?"

There was a pause which promptly followed a silence. She felt the vibrations of the shaking, the child was still there.

"I'm sorry but can you tell me what they look like. I haven't seen many people around, I'd be sure to remember."

"Sure, Aang looks..."

And that was when the girl realized, she didn't know even remotely how her friend looked like, she had never laden functioning eyes on the boy. She knew him by voice and vibrations but that wasn't exactly a feasible way to communicate his appearance.

"I-I…"

"Well…?"

"I'm sorry. I don't…exactly…know…I'm blind."

"I can help."

"What?"

"I can help."

And just like that, a formerly blind child was cured with three simple words. The girl had not thought much of it, only of the miracle that was endowed upon her. A rush filled her as her eyelids began to open, a mix of overwhelming excitement and happiness. The girl took her first peek into the world. And it wasn't like anything she had expected it to be.

Everything was pitch black. Toph woke up in dripping sweat, panting exhaustedly. What she saw, what she had _witnessed_ in that dream…Shutting her eyes tight, she surrendered to something that she had almost never done, she cried. And she didn't know why she cried either. Perhaps it was because of what she saw in the dream. Or maybe it was because of the fact that Toph wasn't truly cured. Yet for whatever reason, Toph did the only thing that her eyes would allow her to do – to cry.

"Toph?" a familiar voice sounded outside her closed "tent" made of rocks, one of warmth that could shine through even in the most desolate times and the one voice that she peculiarly always remembered. She knew the boy by the name of "Twinkletoes" or perhaps more preferably to him, "Aang".

"Toph?" Calling out once more, Toph clamped down her mouth so that she would stop crying and pretend to sleep. Right now, she didn't want to talk to anybody even Twinkletoes.

"Toph, are you alright? I heard you crying." Shifting the plan from "fake sleep" to "maintain pride", Toph earthbended the rock entrance to barely a slit so her voice would become just as clear as her statement.

"I'm fine, it wasn't me. Now go back to sleep Twinkletoes."

"But Toph, I'm pretty sure I heard you crying."

"I'm FINE. Okay? Good night."

"Good night, Toph."

For a brief while, silence reigned between Toph and Aang until…

"So…why were you crying?"

"I wasn't crying. I said Good Night, Twinkletoes. Go to sleep!"

"Was it a bad dream?"

"No, go to sleep." Beads of sweat trickled down her forehead to this lie.

"Come on, Toph, you can tell me. I'm the bridge between the spirit world and this world and well, er, dreams, they're like spiritual aren't they?"

"Don't be an idiot, Twinkletoes, I'm perfectly fine… now gooo awayyyy". With the deliberately stupid-sounding enunciation, the entrance to Toph's tent banged shut, conclusively ending the conversation.

"But you don't sound fine…"

"Well maybe that's because you're bugging me when I'm trying to sleep!"

"But you were crying…"

"What of it? It was just a bad dream."

"The Toph I know doesn't cry. It must have been a really bad dream, huh. You want to talk about it?"

"No, Twinkletoes, I don't. If I did, I would have by now. Like I said, I'm fine. Go to sleep."

"If you say so…"

Mumbling to Aang's persistence, Toph attempted to sleep once more when a flashed image of spilled black blood struck her thoughts. Grumbling to its nuisance, Toph dug her face into the pillows harder as if shielding her from her own thought processes. An hour passed and it wouldn't get out of her mind – it haunted her. The 12-year old girl, shaking and sweating, bended the stone entrance down and crawled through. Her feet told that Aang seemed sound asleep, um, oh well?

Using earthbending, Aang received a sharp jut of rock in the back involuntarily waking him to the hours of night.

"Toph?"

"Sorry, accident. Go to sleep." Toph whispered. She knew that Aang, having the caressing personality he had, wouldn't let go of the earlier situation where he heard her crying in her "tent"; it was a convenient way to nonverbally ask somebody to converse with you.

"Toph, you're shaking."

"It's just cold…it's nothing"

"Then how come you're sweating?"

"Um…"

She felt the vibrations of Aang's feet coming nearer to her tent, and inside she secretly smiled. Motioning for Aang to sit by her in the narrow tent, Toph patted the ground beside her.

"Have a seat, Twinkletoes."

"Thanks…sooo…what happened exactly?"

The 12-year-old girl holding her knees to her chin felt her face grow a little warmer (despite the sweat) as her vibrations told her Aang was sitting quite close to her, in fact really close – no room between them at all. She wouldn't say it but she felt strangely comforted in "Twinkletoes' " presence.

"Sooo…are you going to tell me what happened, Toph?"

"If…you don't mind, I'd actually don't want to talk about it right now…"

"Oh, okay…"

And just when Aang moved toward the rock exit (which was also the entrance)…

"Aang…would you…"

"What? Did you just call me Aang?"

"Nevermind."

"What? What was it?"

"No, forget it, it's stupid."

"Toph, you can tell me."

"Well…would you…sleep next to me, I'm kind of…haunted…I'll widen the tent if you like"

"Um…"

"See? It was stupid. Forget I even said it."

"Sure, if you want."

Feeling a blush coming furiously, Toph moved her head away from Aang's sight.

"Th-thanks."

"No problem. That's what friends are for."

"Yea…friends…"

With that, Toph turned over and slept – soundly and for the first time in quite some time - without haunting interruptions of the images from the dream. Soundly and comforting. She wouldn't admit it even to herself but…she felt…she had…she had feeling for the boy she teased as Twinkletoes.

……………………………………………………………………….

"No tea today, Uncle?" A teenage boy with a scar on the left side of his face squatted beside his Uncle in a camp.

"No, Zuko. We must hurry."

"This doesn't sound like you at all. What's wrong?"

"I know. But I suspect that Azula has hired somebody to help capture the Avatar…and that person is verrryyy near."

"What! How come you didn't tell me this before!"

"You never asked."

"…"

"Relax, Zuko. Let me make you some tea."

Taking his nephew's face of disgust, the old man named "Uncle" abandoned the idea of making tea and collected some things again for the trail.

**So tell me what you think. Very quickly, it's going to become Toph/Aang. Yep, very quickly. **

**If you had time to read this then you must have a teensy bit of extra time to review : Thanks and hopefully your reviews, hopefully constructive criticism or ideas will make the future chapters better. I've had a pretty long break from fic writing (previously TT). **

**Thanks and please take the time to review! I'd appreciate it. **


	2. Chapter II : Unseen Sights Pt 2

…**Through Blind Eyes…**

…**Chapter II…**

"**Unseen Sights Pt 2"**

"I can't get this right, Uncle!"

For what seemed like the thousandth time, another blast of firebending exploded in front of Zuko's face which should have been lightning. Frustrated at his apparent incompetence at mastering Lightning, the boy threw a fist into the ground, causing a small indent upon the Earth.

"Zuko, come sit down and cool off. You must be in the clearest of mind to accomplish this feat. Drink some tea; calm yourself. Peace of mind is the key, Zuko."

"No, Uncle, a peace of mind isn't enough to beat Azula. I must master the forbidden element of Lightning before I face her again. And also as quickly as possible before the 'someone that is working for her' captures the Avatar herself."

"You don't understand my point, Zuko. You cannot master the element of lightning if you remain frustrated and angry. Have a cup of tea with me – just for a while"

Ignoring his Uncle's words, Zuko repeated his stances for lightning. And likewise, the same happened once more. Instead of lightning, quick burst of flames detonated in front of his face, knocking the boy backwards.

"You must not command the lightning – you are only it's humble guide, Zuko. Remember that."

Breathing deep through his nose, the boy began the motion again determined to achieve the deed.

"Zuko, technique before determination. You must not command the lightning."

Taking his Uncle's words to heart this time, a yell of not control, anger, or intimidation this time but sheer willpower resounded about. With that came a spark of lightning that protruded from the boy's fingertips. Smiling at the new milestone in his training, Zuko looked back at his Uncle…who apparently was drinking tea.

"Mm, what a delectable tea! Why do you look at me like that, Zuko?"

………………………………………………………..

The warmth of a new day had barely made its way past the mountains and shone its light when below a boisterous fit of noise shattered its peace. It wasn't the common bustling of birds, communicating to each other in chirps nor was it the unforgiving winds that occasionally went into a frenzy. It was but one simple-minded teenager in amusement.

"Smooch, smoooooch," teased Sokka who had just woken up recently to quite a hilarious scene in his mind – Toph and Aang…in one tent… His face lit up like a bulb, carrying a wide smile and distributing a disruptive yet infectious laughter that would crack even the most tenebrous of attitudes.

Aang, who was aiding Katara in the loading and packing up process, felt a shade of blush coming upon his face but he remained tranquil as if he heard nothing – waiting Sokka out would be the plan. He simply minded his own business until the funny died out. Toph, on the other hand, wasn't so serene about the matter. The girl took an aggressive stance upon her teasing. There was much hypocrisy to that.

"Shut up you idiot, it was nothing like that."

"Sureee, it wasn't." Tears of laughter began to form in Sokka's eyes.

With an easy temper, Toph used actions to express her words, earthbending the ground beneath Sokka, throwing the boy high in the air thereby ending his fit of laughter and replacing them with yelps of surprise. And before proceeding to packing the few of the things she had, Toph couldn't help but smirk at Sokka's expression herself – one which took a 180 from unruly amusement to a clearly illustrated agitation.

Katara, more in the likes of a pacifist, didn't really express anything to the circumstances that she witnessed. It wasn't like she hadn't seen what happened. No, in fact, she was actually awoken by her brother bursting into a raucous sound of loud giggling whilst clutching his sides from laughing so hard. Moreover, she seemed rather shocked into submission actually.

"Okay, so we've got everything done and packed. Remind me where we're going again?" Sokka, who took a turn for the better, opted to forget the happenings he saw and toned down.

"Well…since I've already mastered Water…I think…and I'm set for Earthbending, I believe I'm ready for Firebending. I just need to find somebody to teach me." Aang, silently relieved at Sokka's new attitude, loosened up a bit more. Still though, he couldn't even look at Toph – and when he did, he would blush furiously enough that Sokka would believe he was sick. And though he blushed, it wasn't that he had any feelings for Toph at all. No, she was just Sifu Toph – Toph the friend. The thing was that him standing right next to Katara made him feel like he had committed a heinous crime – a betrayal of some sorts because what he truly loved was Katara herself. After all, didn't the Fortuneteller tell her that she would marry "a powerful bender"? They _were_ destined together after all. Toph…was just a friend. That was it.

"Ookay… but where are we going to find you a Firebending teacher. It's not like we can walk up to a Fire Nation general and request his teaching to the Avatar…I mean the only Firebenders we know that aren't in allegiance with the Fire Nation are Zuko, who is out to capture you to 'restore his honor' and his loony Uncle whom I doubt is even a Firebender – I've never even seen him bend before! And even if he does, he's probably a mediocre bender – remember the fight with the bounty hunter and her pet? He was smelling **and **stealing perfumes! – while we were fighting!"

Interrupting Sokka's rant, Katara took a step in the conversation after evidently pondering the situation of the necessity of a Firebender.

"Well, this might sound crazy, well crazy to just you Sokka, but what if there's more to Zuko's uncle? He _was_ in the Ba Sing Se siege"

"…and lost…"

"Yea but doesn't that prove something? If he was in that siege, then shouldn't he know at least some advanced firebending techniques. Think about it. I say he's probably the only person that'd even contemplate the idea of training the Avatar to defeat the Firelord. And what's even better is that Zuko _is _chasing us. So why not let him catch up to us and politely request for Aang's training?"

"That's enough, Katara. What are you on and where is it?"

"I'm not on anything. I'm just saying – Zuko's uncle is the best bet we've got for Aang's firebending teacher. It's not like we have a vast selection of teachers that would like to aid Aang in vanquishing the Fire Lord."

"I don't know…there's still Jeong Jeong…" said Aang who seemed skeptical himself about the feasibility of Katara's plan. Attempting to brainstorm harder, Aang pressed his brain for more possibilities. But somehow, the only that was pressed was the matter of…last night.

_What was I thinking…doing that…and Katara…she saw me…_

"Yea, but we don't know where he is and he's all the way back thereeee. We know for sure that Zuko's on our tail and he'll be here soon…"

"Hm…what do you think Toph?" Mentally slapping himself in the face for communicating with Toph, Aang felt a pang of guilt surge within him. To that, a blush of red was growing while Aang requested Toph's opinions but it seemed he tried best to mask it. "Should I try out Katara's –"

"No! No, no, no. Not Iroh…" Toph's interruption and manner startled Aang for a second. Shaking her head as if dismissing something painful she continued, "Twinkletoes, you really expect somebody, whose nephew wants to capture you, to help you? That doesn't make _any_ sense at all. In fact, I'd actually think we should stay away from Zuko and Iroh."

"Iroh? You…know his name…?"

"Well…yea… it's a long story."

…

"_Here is your tea. You seem a little too young to be traveling alone"_

"_You seem a little too old."_

"_Perhaps I am."_

…

"_Your nephew is very lucky, even if he doesn't know it. Thank you."_

"_My pleasure. Sharing tea with a fascinating stranger is one of life's true delights."_

"_No, thank you for what you said. It helped me."_

"_I'm glad."_

"_Oh, and about your nephew? Maybe you should tell him that you need **him** too."_

…

……………………………………………………………….

"First, to breathe deep…" Zuko, determined in progressing in the art of Lightning took in a calming inhale of oxygen. Following that was a quick flurry of motions followed by an intimidating range of lightning that exploded from his fingertips.

Iroh who stood by his side nodded to his nephew in acknowledgment of his progress after sipping in his tea.

"Your progress is truly remarkable, Zuko." The teenage boy still adequately surprised (and delighted) at his newfound power smiled for a second and continued the motion and practice that he had repeated for hours and hours.

"Determination is good, Zuko, but it leads to obsession, which makes you blind to everything else. And that is far worse than being physically blind… You must learn to relax."

"I will…when I capture the Avatar and regain my honor."

……………………………………………………………….

"That's everything," breathed a weary Katara as she unloaded the final pack onto Appa.

"Alright, so to that Jeong Jeong guy?" Sokka, who had insisted on traveling toward Jeong Jeong for training finally got his way. "Aang, Toph, you guys ready?"

"Yep."

"Yea."

Mounting onto the air bison, Katara observed Aang and Toph. What was this that she was feeling toward Toph that she had began to develop – it was sour and hostile… no… she was just sleepy – that was all, she wasn't jealous…at all. Nope, she was fine…Besides, jealous of Aang? That was ridiculous…it wasn't like she harbored any ulterior feelings for him at all…

"Here, Toph." Aang extended a helping hand toward Toph as he stood upon Appa.

"It's a huge flying dog. I think I can handle it." Swatting Aang's hand out of the way, Toph proceeded quite simply onto sitting on Appa's saddle next to Sokka, who held his head up by his arm out of boredom.

"Aang, Toph, could we hurry it up? That Jeong Jeong guy's pretty old. He could die any second now. I mean I know you're all boyfriend and girlfriend with her, Aang, but really, what's more important here: Bonding with your girlfriend or defeating the Firelord before Sozin's Comet?"

Scowling at Sokka for the second time that day, Toph, in her blindness, attempted to move toward him to, perhaps, smack some sense into him or express her own opinion of that statement. Usually, a quick jab in the rear by her earthbending powers would do but there was no earth to bend on the flying bison. Whatever Toph intended to do to Sokka never happened as she collided with a silent Aang as the boy moved toward the reigns of the bison. And contrary to her intended action of quieting Sokka of his teasing, she fueled the fire instead, into a giant blazing inferno by colliding with Aang – right on the lips.

Stuck within an awkward state of affairs, there was nothing but silence. And it wasn't that Toph was embarrassed – sure she was quite uncomfortable and self-conscious in the circumstances but that was a minute part of her trouble. A quick intimidating rebut of "Watch where you're going, Twinkletoes!" would solve that problem. She didn't even know if Aang was there – how he took it. Perhaps, he just dismissed it as an accident. But before Toph could say anything back…

"Sorry, Toph. My bad."

"You should be sorry, Twinkletoes. Watch where you're going next time. You know I'm blind. You idiot."

Pretend grunting in fury, Toph took a seat back down on the bison, replaying what happened in her mind over and over again, slowly and torturously letting the information sink in.

_Damn my blind eyes. _

Mentally beating herself, Toph remained quiet for the rest of the journey around Sokka's witty banter about what she had just committed and Katara's mumbles and murmurs that were incoherent and indistinguishable – it sure sounded livid though. And much to Toph's own disappointment, Aang hadn't spoken likewise meaning either one of two possibilities: the boy was too shocked to say anything, too occupied with the matter that had just occurred or he simply had nothing to contribute to the conversations and talk that went around.

Oh how Toph hoped it was the latter…

**I know this wasn't the 'greatest chapter' ever in terms of Toph/Aang circumstances and it's moving at a glacial pace but keep in mind before you judge it, I have to setup the story before I actually delve into it. Thanks!**

**Review please. I'd really like some ideas for the upcoming chapters and your thoughts/constructive criticism/comments are appreciated (even if you don't know it ;) Go the extra mile and review if you had the time to read this story.**

**And also, you may or may not have noticed that I removed the Zutara part. I figured that there wasn't a need for that. This story is about Toph – how being blind, although saying she is fine, can hold her back in countless ways – and how much she's willing to offer in order to regain her sight. So please don't review saying that you may demand the Zutara ship back. **

**As a previous reviewer said, it's not practical. And to that, I will not add it unless it furthers the plots or acts as a device to lead to the ultimate climax of the story. If you'd like to protest to that, feel free to send me a review about it. Otherwise, Zutara is gone.**

The Abriter : Thanks! That makes me feel happy 

MetalDragonFX : Next to each other, not in the same bed ;) For Aang's part, he's just a friend…right? And well, Toph's is a little different.

SokkaObsessedChiq : I'm glad you feel that way – more Taang to come!

Denisen : Updated! I hope you feel the same way with this chapter because well, this chapter is quite straightforward. I'm hoping you'll stay in for this chapter also!

Zako Lord of Randomnessness : Thanks! Appreciated review. Hoping you feel the same way about this chapter also.

Xnecro : You are actually the one that convinced me to remove Zutara. Great advice; it probably wouldn't fit in the story.

Blind water bandit23 : I read your story and absolutely love it (I think you know the one I'm talking about). Unfortunately I only have AIM but you can contact me there also if you like.

DancingPickle101 : I actually have half of Chapter 3 done… in my head : I'm hopeful that you'd remain for this one and the next.

Abcde..too longboo : I agree! Thanks for reviewing. It's always nice to see another Taang fan.

Oathblivion : Your suggestion is quite a wise one and I've changed it to an exclamation mark (including the one in my 1st Chapter.) I love reviews like this that help me better my writing.

Astronomer : Short and to the point. Thanks!

Silver Shadow75 : Done! Enjoy, I hope you do.

Bodandly : Thanks, I'm trying to maintain a non-OOC around here cause that would put the story out of wack.

ReckandCardi : Thanks for the review. I'm glad you think that the characters are in character as I tried to shift some focus of my time on that – editing and such.

Rigmus : Yay my first viewer! Aftermath may be picked up in the future – of course after I'm done with this story.

And to anybody I may have missed, thanks for reviewing. I'm, right now, just covering signed reviews. But if you'd like to contact me to talk through AIM or e-mail (preferably AIM) that'd be nice!

**Chapter 3 : Toph begins to express her feelings for Aang in walks and talks. Likewise, she feels pangs of guilt occasionally for what has to be done. That said, Katara is also beginning to experience jealousy. You don't appreciate something until you lose it… seriously.**


	3. Chapter III : Turns of Endearment Pt 1

…**Through Blind Eyes**…

…**Chapter III**…

"**Turns of Endearment Pt 1**"

It was a cold, abnormally serene night that day – half a day of flying can accomplish that, wearing one out even without having them do anything but watch the infinite clouds hover by. Ironically, such quietness seemed to have wrecked everyone's mood. But Toph especially didn't like it, without the ability to "see" with her feet, being naturally blind, and traveling ever so quietly, the situation truly felt uncomfortable – like an inevitable death was slowly creeping upon her only waiting for the correct minute and time to pounce. It was only natural of her to begin fidgeting.

"Toph! Can't you stay still? I know we're all a little bit tired but restless for flying for half a day, but there's no need to attract attention to yourself." Katara, who kept her thoughts perhaps to herself the whole time until now seemed to be the only one with the attitude for an argument.

"You don't know what it's like to not be able to see or hear anything right now when it's just so quiet."

"Oookay, I'm closing my eyes and it's not that bad. And look, Toph, I'm not fidgeting around!"

"Look! Over there, that's a nice place to set up camp. Don't you think?" Sensing a coming fight, Sokka shrewdly interrupted the two and it worked beautifully. To that statement, there was an entire reversal of moods.

"Yip-Yip, Appa." Aang skillfully maneuvered Appa into the obscure area that Sokka had pointed to – next to a flowing river and likewise near steep mountain terrain, convenient for waterbending and earthbending training.

"Well, I better be going to sleep now before Sugar Queen over there goes all awol on me again." Before Katara could even reply, the girl hopped off the air bison and set up camp with her earthbending.

Storming directly up to the sealed door entrance of her rock tent, Katara, once more, blew her top and Aang could only watch. Sure, he had seen slight animosities between them when fatigued but this one had no comparison. It seemed like everything one said to the other would spark a fire.

"How can you be so infuriating!"

"Go back to sleep!" That said, cracks underneath Katara began to form until a jagged spire formed throwing her yards away from the rock tent.

"You know what?" continued Toph inside her tent. "I think I'm going to go for a walk; I haven't been able to do that for the whole day." Blowing the entrance or exit of the tent off, Toph reappeared in the middle of a yawn. "Maybe just a quick one."

"Toph? A walk? At this time? I don't think it'll be safe," said Aang. So he finally came out of that shell since the "accident" earlier that day. A wry smile appeared on Toph's face, featuring some kind of cleverly shrewd plan.

"Well then, Twinkletoes, if you're so worried, why don't you join me for a walk?"

"I –"

"Toph, we're all pretty tired right now, I think the last thing that Aang need is a walk with _you_." Still showing evidence of her bitterness towards Toph, Katara purposefully emphasized the "you" part of the sentence. Toph, in reply, opened up her mouth for some witty remark but Aang, quickly butting in before a fight could happen, suggested otherwise.

"Katara, I actually think a nice brisk walk with Toph is a good idea. It'll be…refreshing."

"Twinkletoes, come on, let's go." Avoiding Katara's glowering stares of what could only be classified as "being upset", Aang hurried alongside Toph, who hadn't even taken so much as a glimpse back toward her camp. The last thing Aang heard from Katara was a deep sigh of "It's Kyoshi Island all…over again."

"You know, Twinkletoes, it's nice having somebody around to finally walk with; it gets boring when I go alone." Inhaling the air in deeply, Toph began to stretch out her limbs as if just waking up from a satisfying nap. Aang watched her stretched when he noticed a panda lily nearby – it was some time since he saw one.

_A Panda Lily!_ _I never knew there were panda lilies here_. Picking up the flower, Aang shoved it quickly in his pocket unnoticed by Toph before continuing the conversation.

"You've done this before? I mean….taking walks." After seeing the panda lily, Aang couldn't help but feel that little thing called a "Conscience" calling out to him and shoving in images of the disgusted look on Katara's face when he agreed to take a walk with Toph.

"Sure, every morning sometimes, mostly at night though. Well…it's not like I can tell the difference between day and night anyways, they're all the same to me except the sounds different times of days make and what I can 'see' around me. That sort of stuff."

"Really? Like what." A little bit more intrigued in the conversation, Aang forcefully shoved back those ever-reminding thoughts of Katara into the corner of this mind.

"Well, for example, if I see Sokka up and about, it's probably daytime as he's a pretty late sleeper." Aang, chuckling mildly at the statement began to feel quite a little more sociable now compared to the awkward compelling feeling to sprint back to the campsite as fast as he could.

"If you don't mind me asking Toph, how does being blind feel like?" Sure, it was a reversal of moods but Aang took the chance – it was simply a curious question from a curious person. Plus, there had been an awkward silence that passed by that he _had _to fill in.

"Twinkletoes, that was a pretty stupid question, even from you. Here, like this." Using her two hands, Toph covered both of Aang's eyes from behind him. Although a slight blush fashioned onto her face while masking his eyes, Toph nevertheless kept a steady voice.

Aang felt a little sorry for the girl but he knew that Toph didn't like that – the Toph he knew expressed herself as independent and self-sufficient yet…

"It must be miserable living like this, it's really dark in here."

"Yea, just stay like that for the rest of your life but it's not _that_ bad, well, once you get used to it. But it's still pretty sad once you think about it." There was a hint of self-pity in her tone as Toph said this and for that she mentally slapped herself in the face.

"How do you mean?" Aang, who had noticed that Toph took a seat down dangling her feet along the edge of a precipice overlooking the sinuous river, followed her example and sat beside her.

"Well, you know, the only thing I ever see is the color of black; I don't even know how certain things look like, you know – being born blind and all. In fact, I don't even know how I look like – my dressers would do my hair, my clothes everything like that." Toph's face turned toward Aang's demonstrating that though she shifted her head, she couldn't see anything. Her eyes seemed empty and fathomless; Aang felt an ounce of pity for the girl.

Attempting to brighten the mood among the two, Aang made a wide smile until he realized Toph couldn't see the smile.

"But…that made you a really good earthbender – the best I know of."

"Yea…but for what? It gets tiring the only way I ever know that you exist is by the vibrations that you make with your feet. I get tired of fighting all the time…sometimes…I really wish I wasn't blind." Toph's remark came quick and blunt as if she had been pondering the same for a long time under the tenebrous expanse of her eyes. Taking a deep inhalation of oxygen, she turned her head toward Aang once more as if waiting for some reply, comment, or answer to the remark but there came none. Unconsciously leaning in toward Aang, Toph decided to continue herself. Mirroring her example, Aang leaned toward Toph likewise.

"Twinkletoes, sometimes…I wish…I could just settle down…and.." A brief silence came between them as Aang took in those words.

_Toph…was…just…a…friend…Sifu Toph…_

But the boy couldn't help himself **not** look away…Toph was…well… Diminishing the distance between their lips, Toph's had barely touched Aang's lip before the reminder of Katara came screaming back to him. Harshly pulling his head away from Toph, the 12-year-old boy instinctively backed away from her.

"Toph, no, I can't…I can't do this… Katara…" Normally to such a given situation of these sorts, Toph would have felt embarrassed to some extent but this time…Katara…that really triggered something within her.

"**Katara**! What's up with you and her anyways. That's all you ever say. Katara, Katara, **Katara!**. Seriously, Twinkletoes, she's not the _only_ girl around here you know." Not even carrying a least bit of embarrassment with her, Toph had blown into full out rage. She had given everything to the boy and he had rejected her for…**Katara**.

"I'm destined to be with her." Remarking something with another statement proving more outrageous, Toph's head only got hotter.

"What!"

"The Fortuneteller… she told Katara that she would marry a powerful bender."

"So what? **She's a fortuneteller. You believe that kind of stuff? **You might not be the powerful bender – there's lots of powerful benders out there. You're basing it just on that?" Pointing a finger right at Aang's forehead, Toph's eyes began to water.

"But I'm the Avatar! I'm going to know all four bending elements. Toph…you don't understand, Katara and I…"

"You know what? Just shut up. Just. Shut. Up. Forget anything happened or was **about **to happen at least. I'm going. **Good night.**" Toph, in all her frenzy, started off walking away, half-expecting Aang to chase after her. Seething with hate half of which was for how illogical Aang had been but mostly for Katara, Toph stormed away leaving Aang behind, completely dumbstruck and speechless. That was the case – until a range of blue lightning streaked across the vicinity where they had set up camp.

"Katara!" Not knowing about the ambush in their camp, Toph, then and there, completely lost it.

"Is that _all _you can say? Katara? **What's the matter with you!**"

"No, Toph, there's lightning streaking across the campsite. Sokka and Katara are in danger! We have to go!" With that statement, Toph's eyes widened in astonishment and a little of fear. She guessed what had happened – it had to be…her…

"Azula…," whispered Toph softly under her breath. The name struck fear within her, shoving away all the frustration of Aang that she had felt earlier.

"Quick, Toph hold onto me, I'll fly us there with my gli- Toph?" By the time Aang had reached the word "glider", Toph was gone. Confused for a split-second, another range of lightning that emerged was all it took for the 12-year-old boy decided he hadn't the time to worry about it and set off flying for their campsite.

"Katara! Sokka!" Aang, reaching the vicinity of the camp, found a battle that had taken place already. Puddles of water from Katara's waterbending gourd littered the ground. Toph's rock tent had been completely knocked over and worst of all, Sokka and Katara were nowhere to be found.

"_I know that Azula wouldn't have left without capturing me…that's for certain" the Avatar reminded himself. _

A lightning bolt hurtled toward Aang. Airbending quickly past it, the boy swiftly. Close one. The attacker still hadn't shown herself though. This time, cautious for incoming lightning bolts, the 12-year-old Avatar took a fighting stance, prepared for battle.

"Show yourself," commanded Aang but he didn't really expect the ambusher to truly show themselves to his word. It was more of a "I have courage to fight you" sort of expression.

He paused, listening for movement – the crackle of electricity on his left causing him to instinctively jump towards the right, glimpsing at what would have hit him pass by. A smell of his own sweat filled the air around him keeping him ever more alert but not alert enough.

Another bolt of lightning darted toward him striking the boy square in the chest. Clutching at the new wound, Aang noticed blood had been spilled. His muscles tensed as the pain slowly sunk in. Staring at the ground too concerned in sucking up the agony, a silhouette jumped in front of him.

"I'm shown." A man, scarred on the left side of his face, stood before the Avatar, smirking in victory.

"Zuko," squinting his eyes in hatred and lifting himself back to standing ground, Aang used his staff to blow a cyclone of air toward his attacker.

It was swiftly parried and broken through by barrages of lightning from Zuko's fingertips which made contacts upon Aang's left shoulder, impacting him back yards away. Already injured and energy-expended, he struggled to get back up to his feet and fight.

To that, the boy already knew he was outmatched; Zuko had mastered lightning, something that Aang hadn't any experience of – the match was capture or escape and he preferred escape. Bolts after bolts rushed by as the Avatar did his best to time his dodges and rhythms in evading, adrenaline rushing through him assisting him ignore the pain in his tensed body.

"You can't dodge forever!" Doubling his effort to strike the Avatar, Zuko aggressively darted his bolts in a progressively faster rate attempting to bypass Aang's defenses.

Finally catching the Avatar wincing in current pain, unable to evade quickly enough, Zuko's attack struck the boy's right shoulder. Wearied, bloodied, and out of breath, the Avatar laid there unmoving.

"Who would've thought that the mighty Avatar, master of all elements would be so susceptible to lightning?" Smirking, Zuko prepared another stance for a subsequent lightning strike and all Aang could do was grimace for the impending pain – but it never came.

A ridge of rocks spiked and traveled through the ground toward Zuko finally reaching a spot underneath him which promptly shot up into a large spire, forcefully knocking Zuko back before the lightning reached Aang.

Aang weakly sighed in relief. "Toph…" The girl had appeared overhead riding Appa with an unconscious Sokka and injured Katara.

"Aang! Grab my hand" Katara extended her hand to Aang who was lifted onto the flying bison. "You're hurt. Let me heal you."

Mustering up the last bit of energy to weakly nod to the voice, the Avatar then fell unconscious.

……………………………………………………….

"Um, how are you throwing streaks of lightning coming from the distance if you're right here, Azula?" Ty Lee, innocently as ever, who boringly observed the sky in the tank-train when traces of lightning began to dart through the sky. Pondering for a few seconds, Azula came up with a logical response.

"Zuko…has mastered the element of lightning? Well, this certainly is interesting…"

"Won't that pose as a problem? It'll be that much easier for him to capture the Avatar."

"Not to worry, Ty Lee, all's well. We will take care of Zuko and his loony uncle right now, and then we'll chase the Avatar. And if all goes to plan, we have the element of surprise and before he even knows it, he'll be captured."

"If you don't mind me asking, what element of surprise _do_ we have?"

"A little blind girl named Toph will ensure our victory. I've made sure of it."

……………………………………………………….

The fight had finished exactly an hour ago and everybody was settled in their new campsite. Sokka, who wasted no time in falling into slumber held a peaceful grin on his face – one could only imagine what he was dreaming about. Katara, wearied after expending energy healing Aang's wounds, was fast asleep and Toph, who hadn't spoken one word to the boy since the fiasco earlier isolated herself in her own tent. And Aang? Well, Aang had been wide awake, pretend sleeping for Katara's worried sake, during the past thirty minutes, well aware of what would have been the outcome of his battle had it not been for Toph.

"Toph" Aang, who decided to pay her a visit, knocked on the entrance several times.

"Go away, I'm sleeping, thus the closed entrance, genius."

"Toph… about earlier today…"

"Don't want to talk about it. Go away."

"Toph, it's important. I swear."

"Fine." The rock door collapsed upon itself into sand. She appeared in front of Aang. "What is it, Twinkletoes?"

Swiftly taking out the Panda Lily flower that Aang had found earlier, a wide, toothy smile formed as he presented it to her.

"This…is for you…"

"Aang…what is it? I'm blind, remember Twinkletoes? Or did you forget."

"It's a Panda Lily. You don't need to see it. Smell it is enough. Here."

Holding the flower up to her nose, Toph chanced a sniff and presented in return a smile.

"It smells wonderful, Twinkletoes."

"I'm glad you think so."

Then, just as quickly as it formed, the smile dissipated into a frown.

"Maybe you should give this to Katara…it's obviously –-"

Interrupted midway in sentence, Aang planted a kiss right on her lips to disprove her point. Evidently dumbstruck, Toph said nothing.

Aang placed the Panda Lily delicately into her hand.

"No, Toph, it's for you."

**So originally, instead of the battle scene between Zuko and Aang, it was going to be a Zutara thing. Here was what I had planned : **

**So Aang comes back to see what had happened and he finds Zuko & Katara…together. blank spot here later in camp, Aang, heartbroken, gives the panda lily which he planned to give to Katara, instead to Toph. Thing was, I would have done that except there were tooo many holes in the matter.**

**Firstly, if it was Zutara why would Zuko be attacking the camp. If he didn't attack the camp why did Aang return? Secondly, if that sequence had happened, shouldn't Zuko be in the group? Too many plot holes in that one.**

**Anyhow, I've decided the story will be an AangxKataraxToph love triangle. And if you don't validate that Katara would be jealous watch that Kyoshi episode again where she was obviously jealous when Aang hanged out with all those girls. If you have any arguments about that, feel free to review and tell me.**

**Kindly review and tell me what you think. All reviews are appreciated and they will probably better my work in the better chapters. Suggestions are probably used to so if you have any suggestions/ideas that my feeble brain could never possibly dream of, please review and tell me about it : Thanks!**

**MetalDragonFX : I agree! Taang rocks. It's always nice to see another shipper.**

**Xnecro : It really did seem that the fic was leaning towards the triangle. Thanks for your supported – you always have the most insightful reviews.**

**DancingPickle101 : Wow! That was clever, indeed. Yes, the hardest part about having them in your head is transferring them to paper – I know from experience :**

**Silver Shadow75 : Perhaps Zutara will have a place in the story in the future – off the top of my head, Zuko and Iroh join to teach Aang firebending and somehow hearts collide. Something to that effect. Just keep in mind, Zutara isn't gone forever in this fic.**

**Zako Lord of Randomness : And thanks for reviewing! Appreciated.**

**Astronomer : Thanks! I hope you'll like this one even more.**

**Tophness : Thanks! I do my best of effort to keep them in character especially Toph. What I worry about is Sokka's which I'm still figuring out.**

**Denisen : Let me know what you think of this one too, they actually kissed in this one and not just accidentally.**

**Aheyl : "I'm glad you think so" as Aang would stay. I hope you stay in for this chapter also as the Taang is only just getting started.**


	4. Chapter IV : Turns Of Endearment Pt 2

…**Through Blind Eyes…**

…**Chapter IV…**

"**Turns of Endearment Pt 2"**

"That worthless earthbending peasant!" skulked Zuko for the past minutes about Aang's escape among the ruins of his enemy's former campsite. There was _always _something in the way – _always_. "I had the Avatar right where I wanted him!"

Iroh exhaled a rather large sigh, already uninterested in his nephew's rants. It wasn't as if he hadn't seen Zuko like this before; the Avatar had slipped through their fingers numerous times. Yet, they trolled on. The more the prince seethed on about their adversity; the harder to simulate such fabrications subjecting intention on listening. His eyes began slipping into micro-sleep, that is, until the word 'earthbending peasant' clicked into place with 'blind girl from earlier'.

"Be careful, Prince Zuko, for she may not be what she seems," suggested Iroh wisely – contemplating about his last encounter with the girl.

"Uncle! What else does she seem like but an interfering peasant?"

"Hmm…" Iroh, evident that something was troubling him, kept his thoughts furtively to himself.

"What are you thinking, Uncle? What more can be to the girl?"

"I am thinking…" said Iroh, pausing in between, conjuring a solemn and humorless expression. For just a second, an ominous feature had occupied his entire face, then, "Noodles!" Dismissing the momentary somber look, the man replaced it with a wide joking smile.

"I don't need any noodles right now. I need the Avatar. We'd better start off after him while he's still recovering from my attacks." Abandoning his sulking attitude, Zuko lifted himself back to his feet.

"Hm? What was that?" Iroh was evidently engaged in appeasing his appetite with noodles.

"I said we'd better get moving while –"

Iroh, rarely as he ever did, set aside his bowl of noodles. "I know what you said. I heard a rustling nearby."

Just as the words left Iroh's mouth, a dagger flew toward Zuko only narrowly missing him at his left ear, perching itself onto a tree behind the prince.

"I can't let you do that Zu-zu." A figure emerged out from shadows and behind her were two others – an austere-faced girl and another with a wide grin upon her face. Snapping her fingers, Azula summoned a small blue flame at her fingertips palpably waging battle.

…………………………………………………………..

There was a peculiar sense of tranquility that night within Toph, she hadn't any trouble falling asleep and even then, she couldn't recall any experience with nightmares. Strangely enough, she slumbered quickly and comfortably. It was one of the rare times when insomnia hadn't crept up behind her. A rather eccentric thing, insomnia was, it gave the person quite a time to ponder and ruminate upon. Where better to cogitate than to be delimited in the confines of darkness when the world is in slumber? Yet, the only thing on her mind before sleep was Aang, nothing and nobody other than Aang. And as she slept serenely within her tent, the Panda Lily laid right next to the girl. Serenely, that is, before trepidation consumed her. The inevitable vibrations she had dreaded since day one of their travels had finally came upon her – the tank-train had come…and no doubt in it was Azula.

Panic overwhelmed Toph. Disturbed by the vibrations in her sleep of the tank-train, Toph earthbended the entrance away to check for herself as if some wishful thinking declared it not to be true. Unto her own "eyes", she saw steam billowing from a distance. Azula was coming…for the Avatar – for **her**.

"Aang! Sokka! Katara!" Toph alerted the camp in a frenzied manner, shouting in desperation that the moment had come. "We have to go! Now!"

"Five more minutes," mumbled Sokka, still fast asleep.

Katara, however, awoke up promptly. "Toph? What is it?"

"Azula! She's coming. We have to go." Toph delivered a swift kick at Sokka who, on the receiving end, woke up in a disturbed startle. "Now!"

"She can't find us here, Toph. Don't worry. Appa isn't shedding like last time. Plus, Aang still needs to recover from his last battle with Zuko." Pointing at the Avatar, Toph, herself, realized the condition Aang was in – but if they traveled, that would be a lesser evil.

_They don't understand…what I've done…_

"No! We have to go now!"

"Aang needs rest, Toph! He can't go anywhere!"

"He can still fly on Appa, can't he?"

"Toph, you don't understand how serious his wounds are, I healed some of the external damage but there's only so much I'm enabled to cure. That battle with Zuko took out a lot of him."

"Better than being captured by Azula."

"She can't find us! There's no way!"

"Better safe than sorry."

"Look! Just because you don't care about Aang's well-being doesn't mean that the rest of us don't."

"What! You're saying _I don't care? _Who was the one that predicted the incoming ambushes before they came? Me!" Sokka, who was sleeping in the midst of the spoken fight, received another swift kick on the head. "And get up, you!"

…………………………………………………………..

"The Avatar's mine, Azula!" Zuko readied his stance waiting for his sister's next assault. Narrowing his eyes in hatred for his sister, he breathed in deeply, resolving all aggression and readying his lightning attacks.

Ty Lee and Mai, following their comrade's example, arranged their postures and positions, evidently assisting Azula in the fight. That is, until Iroh came between Zuko and the two girls, smiling a toothy grin

"What? Just because I'm an old man doesn't mean I can't fight. Although, I am a bit worried that fighting will give me a stomachache as I've just had noodles." Ty Lee giggled to his statement until Mai smacked some sense into her head harshly, reminding her of the duty they had come to execute.

Azula started sidestepping in a circle, spying opportunities for an assault, and Zuko performed likewise, mirroring her steps. The two circled one another until Azula shook her head, chuckling.

"Zu-zu, you're so foolish. Father's embarrassed of you – even if you did capture the Avatar, you would still be banished – you are a failure in his eyes. In fact, the whole family believes you're a disgrace to the Fire Nation."

"That's not true. You always lie. Azula always lies," replied Zuko mechanically. Gritting his teeth assertively and clenching in his fist, the prince delivered several flamed strikes with his fists at Azula. Although, to no avail, his sister simply side-flipped and cart-wheeled out of the way effortlessly. In midair, she shot a range lightning. Zuko, rolling toward the left, evaded her attack.

Precise at her target, Azula subsequently generated sparks of lightning on her left fingertips which promptly shot out to Zuko. Countering with his own personal voltage, the resulting was an explosion. Azula sprinted through the smoke at her brother, making swift electrified melee strikes at his head.

"_What is she doing? Azula never rushes into close-ranged combat like that when she has range against me." Zuko contemplated at what his sister was planning, although half-distracted from the incoming fists._

Weaving and dodging the attacks, Zuko acquired no opportunity to reverse to offense as the wave of relentless attacks proceeded against his favor.

Finally, an opportunity opened and Zuko initiated a speedy fire-bended blow unto Azula's right arm who was sent flying backwards feet away her original position. The fire prince smirked; today was the day where he finally would outmatch his sister. After years of determined efforts in arduous training, it all built up to this – he who was born with nothing would vanquish and kill his fire-bending prodigy of a sister.

_Who was the disgrace to the Fire Nation now…?_

Instantly rebounding to her feet, Azula dished out an upsurge of barrages of electrical melee than previously before, enraged at the damage Zuko had done.

Actually, the damage that Zuko had done was trivial, a mere scratch perhaps. It was Azula's self-esteem that had taken more beating – after all her talk, she was the first to receive the blow.

Still eluding and sidestepping every attack, the prince ensued another possible exposure of weakness. It, backfired, however, as each assault that he evaded, unconsciously triggered a backing movement. And with each back-step, Zuko came closer to a boulder, which he had finally collided into. Azula, smiling a devilish grin at his misfortune, laid electrified strikes after strikes aiming for Zuko's head.

The two arms, however, were caught at the wrist, restricting movement from a gaping Azula. Her plan was countered. Turning his disadvantage to his advantage, the prince blew a breath the intensity of white fire into Azula's face, scalding her for enough time so that Zuko could manage to sprint past his adversary.

"Come on, I'm just an old man." Iroh sighed, effortlessly evading four daggers thrown at him. Decades of experience had taught the man much, one of which was eluding sharply aimed, high-speed arrows.

"_Ah so that girl is mainly a ranged fighter," thought Iroh, assessing his situation._

Ty Lee rushed into melee, swiftly delivering her chi-strikes at the arm. Iroh, even hastier, caught the wrist whilst using his other hand to negate a kick from Mai.

"_And this one is a close combat warrior. They are quite a formidable team together."_

Swinging his momentum around, Iroh's arm whirled a 180 carrying the girl with it. Ty Lee, staggering back up to her feet, assaulted another chi-point, but Iroh purposely late caught the wrist right after he saw where the girl was targeting.

"_I see. She is trying to use my own pressure points against me. If her attack, had they made impact, my right arm would be useless and limp. She is quite a dangerous foe."_

A brilliant smile came upon the old man's face as he let go of the wrist. A bulb had brightened in his mind, formulating a plan. As expected of Ty Lee, the acrobat dished out relentless flurry of pressure-point strikes as Iroh continued to smoothly dodge them, observing the attacks that were carried out.

"_To defeat my opponent, I must first know my opponent. Very good."_

Iroh suddenly sprinted toward the ranged fighter who was chucking waves and waves of daggers toward the man.

"_If she is specialized in ranged-fighting, she must not be as competent in close-combat. And the other, specialized in pressure-point close combat will not be able to attack and thusly must follow me." _

All, though, was hastily deflected by a whirlwind of fire-bending. Ty Lee hurriedly trailed behind the man.

"_As a ranged dagger-throwing fighter, this girl will be useless with limp arms," reflected Iroh as his firebending shields annulled Mai's thrown weapons._

Iroh caught the acrobat's wrist, who had finally caught up, as she motioned another strike. Subsequently, the man thrusted the girl's fingertips onto Mai's pressure points, disabling her arms.

Ty Lee, gaping in astonishment, allowed Iroh to promptly deliver a firebending blow straight into Mai's stomach, knocking her unconscious as she flew backwards.

Still gripping his opponent's right wrist, Iroh impacted the fingertips toward Ty Lee's own left arm pressure point then the right arm's. The old man smiled as he saw a bewildered reaction to the two limp arms. Finalizing the job with a fire-bended blow to the stomach once more, Iroh covered his own stomach with his hands.

"Ooh…my own stomach does not feel very well. I knew I should not have fought directly after eating noodles."

A dash of electricity whipped past Zuko's head, narrowly missing him. Subsequently, consecutive bolts followed its example and likewise, the prince eluded them. The entire match was a showdown of lightning; who could elude the other's assault as barrages from both Azula and Zuko hurtled toward the other. That is, until both of them fired their shots congruently in unison. Then, the match would entirely reverse into a fight of stamina and strength; who could out-power or outlast the other as a stalemate of fire transpired.

Beads of sweat slowly seeped down Zuko's face. The prince already knew he could last so much longer. Yet, as always, Zuko pushed himself forward with an unwavering resolution to overcome his sister; he _wouldn't give up without a fight._ He had always relied solely upon purpose and willpower to subdue his adversary; these circumstances were of no exception – **he** **would win.**

There was much that was taking place within Azula's mind; she acknowledged that against Zuko in such a situation detailing stamina and strength, there was perhaps little ways to victory. Raw skill alone would not be enough to defeat her brother in this state of affairs. Yet, as always, Azula performed what she did best – manipulation. There was no point in forestalling Zuko's victory with her physical qualities, but instead to beset her opposition with psychological warfare – **she would win.**

"It's amazing to think why Mother would save a worthless, pathetic life like yours," snarled Azula, whose clear intention was kept in mind. A smirk developed unto her face, taunting her brother in a spiteful fashion.

Zuko, appalled at the part of 'saving life' demanded clarification. His eyes widened to the comment. "**What?** Mom ran away. That's it."

"Why, you never wondered? And I thought you and her were so close."

Speechless and a bit fatigued from the standoff of lightning, Zuko only contemplated in silent words.

_Azula always lies. Azula always lies. Azula always lies._

Zuko shut his eyes as if shielding himself from Azula; he knew that whatever the reason was for Ursa's sudden leaving, it was apt to be for the worse. Yet, he couldn't help but to listen in Azula's poisoned words.

"Let me tell you why, Zu-zu. Mother…Ursa, I guess, left because she was a witness, a witness of Azulon's death; she fled because she knew that her fate would be the same as Grandfather's as soon as Father caught up with her."

"That makes no sense; she didn't flee to protect me. She fled to protect **herself**," spat out Zuko, quickly as he could. Somehow, finding a hole in Azula's words seemed like victory itself, but the prince knew that that wouldn't be the end of the story; Azula always had something more to hurt you, telling lies to cause emotional damage or even the truth if she thought it would hurt more.

"_Peace of mind is the key. Peace of mind is the key." Zuko repeated Iroh's words._

"No, she didn't flee **just **to protect herself. She ran off because she realized that if she had stayed for a certain death, you would attempt to defend her. Had you done that…Zu-zu, you would have died too, but since she fled, Father had no excuse to kill you like he wants to. Why do you think Father's always been harsher to you than me? Well, besides the fact that **I am a fire-bending prodigy.**"

_--Flashback—_

"_Dad's going to kill you. Really, he is."_

"_Ha-ha, Azula. Nice try."_

"This… isn't… true. **You're lying!**" A burst of lightning energy came forth from the prince's fingertips. Maintaining the upsurge of power, Azula's smirk grew even wider; plan obviously succeeding.

"Why would I lie to you? What's the _point _in lying to you? What I speak is only the truth." Her eyes flashed with malicious intent. "Go ahead, I know you want to ask the question… 'Did mother survive?' You want to know, and I have the answer."

Prince Zuko shook his head, somehow, he didn't want to know…at least not from Azula who twisted everything for her advantage. But there was no helping, he was in an impasse, struggling to overpower his opponent. Simply stopping the flow of electricity throughout his fingertips would allow Azula's assault to pass. Zuko had no choice _but_ to listen; that was when the prince knew what he was in for.

"_The element of lightning requires discipline and a peace of mind – Azula seeks to rile me, breaking my hold of lightning and causing me to lose the battle. Focus."_

Things just got a lot more complicated.

"I'll tell you, Zu-zu," continued Azula by herself, seeing her strategy come into full effect by the looks of Zuko's features. "Ursa was **murdered**, stabbed to the death when she let her guard down. A gruesome fate, really, but I suppose that's what one gets when one crosses paths with Father."

Seeing that Zuko was speechless due to astonishment, Azula relentlessly persisted on her psychological assault determined in wrecking her brother's control.

"You know, Zu-zu, I hear from the guards who witnessed **Mom's** mangled and deformed corpse afterwards that the first move the assailant performed was plucking out Mother's eyes with a dagger to blind her. With no sight, the murderer then proceeded into sadistically torturing her by stabbing in her non-vital areas, not allowing Death to come swiftly for her," spoke Azula as she, herself, witnessed the grimaces from Zuko's face as the images were clearly depicted into his mind.

"And when Mother screamed in agony and in cries of help, the aggressor sliced into her tongue with the sharp steel of the blade, slowly edging into it until her yells were stifled – and it didn't stop there. The razor-sharp blade continued it's movement toward the end of the tongue until the whole thing was carved off, leaving a stump plus pools of blood in Mother's mouth."

In a sadistic style, Azula contorted her face, evidently smiling at the repulsion that Zuko had to endure – but his sister refused to cease.

"But even **you** might know that simply slicing off one's tongue isn't enough to stop them from making noises. The guards who were there that fateful day told me that there were vivid punctures in the neck where the dagger had cut through; they hypothesized that the murderer shoved the dagger deep down into Mother's throat when she wouldn't stay quiet. Perhaps if she was a fire-bender she would have been able to defend herself."

Gruesome pictures enveloped the prince's mind – his mother whose eyes were plucked out by a dirk, whose tongue were sliced through and removed, and whose throat received a dagger that was shoved in with all force mustered.

"_Wait… 'who were there that fateful day'? 'witnessed Mom's corpse?'"_

"You said that the guards were there and they witnessed what was occurring. Why didn't they stop the murderer?"

Unfaltering in her malevolent intent, Azula chuckled in her brother's attention to detail.

"_Zu-zu hasn't gotten the message yet – I see, I will have to break it to him then and with that…"_

"Well? You haven't answered my question. **Why didn't they stop the murderer?** **They were there as you said – did they simply watch as my mom was killed and tormented?**"

The princess's chuckle turned into a full-blown laughter of pure malevolence.

"**Well? Answer me!**"

"The guards couldn't help Mother, **I killed them before they could help.** **Then, I proceeded into killing Mom. I was the one who slowly penetrated the dagger into the pupils and plucking them out. I was the one who chopped off her tongue, placing it beside her eyes . I _was the one _who punctured into the back of her throat. **And after that, I hacked her hands through at the wrists and her feet at the ankles. Oh, you should have seen her – spilled pools of blood beside mutilated slices of body parts as her handless arms flailed replacing her screams had **your dagger **not been in her throat."

"You…killed…Mom?"

"**And with your own dagger also**, the one Iroh gifted to you," laughed Azula. "The blood that spilled upon your dagger as they pierced through the pupils of your mother is probably the most you have of her now."

_--Flashback—_

"_Where's mom?"_

"_No one knows. Oh, and last night, Grandpa passed away."_

"_Not funny, Azula. You're sick. And **I want my knife back, now**."_

"_Who's going to make me? Mom?"_

"**I'll kill you myself!**"

Then and there, Azula's victory was achieved – Zuko's formerly consistent flow of lightning detonated in his face with utmost energy as his aggression took over. The prince flew backwards due to an aggressed explosion which power was so intense, it knocked Azula feet backwards also. But the damage it had done to Zuko's was inequitable; the prince laid there – charred and unmoving. His energy had been expended though a seething hate for his sister consumed him. Zuko could do nothing about it, though, his body had its limits and those limits had been passed.

Casually walking up to her unconscious brother, Azula prepared a final strike without a moment's hesitation. She had no sibling-love between them; a spark of electricity was barely conjured when Iroh shouted from a distance among two other knocked-out girls.

"Don't you dare, Azula…"

"Hm?"

"Don't you **dare** kill my son."

"He's not your son, Uncle; he's your nephew. Your **real** son died tragically in battle or do you not remember?"

"Whatever you do to **Zuko**, I will return ten-fold back to you! I'm warning you Azula – **let him go, now!**."

Plainly ignoring his threats, Azula continued.

"Uncle, don't you think it's convenient that your son died **in battle **while my father wanted to become Fire-Lord?"

"Enough, Azula! **Let him go**!"

"No…I don't believe I will."

With that, Azula's sparks of electricity crackled with life as she shoved her left index and middle fingertips to Zuko's heart – the most dangerous area where electricity can hit. The prince's body jumped as if startled then remained its original state – motionless.

"You've done it now, Azula!" A blast of fire-bending hurtled toward Azula which she easily ducked under.

"Have you **no shame**, Azula? That you would hurt a banished prince who has been searching to regain his honor for three and a half years with such information is beyond sadistic! These things are meant to be tenderly told when he is comfortable and relaxed – not in the midst of fighting!"

"I don't do…comfortable, Uncle."

Barrages of fire-bending persisted toward Azula with a progressive pace from Iroh who hadn't even broken a sweat.

"I know of your plans, Azula, do not think that I don't – that you would make **such** a deal with Toph promising her **that**…you are evil that needs to be rid of from this world!"

"And you are an old man long **past his expiration date **from this world," spat out Azula as she eluded yet another fireball but even she grew wearied, especially from the previous battle and it was only expected that her elusion would fail her at some point. The girl was struck on the side by Iroh's fireball.

Iroh walked up to Zuko's sister, lying on the ground in an anemic fashion.

"Kill me, Uncle, kill me if you have the guts," she breathed, too exhausted to say anything more.

"Prince Zuko would never forgive me if I killed you myself – that revenge is his and his alone."

"**Zu-zu** is dead! Nobody can survive such electrical surges into the heart."

Angering Iroh, the man had to force himself not to fire-bend flames into Azula's face.

"Prince Zuko has more will and determination than you will **ever **have. Go, Azula…just go…"

For the Fire-Nation princess, she had no choice **but **to run; she had already exhausted her energy in one battle with Zuko, she could not afford to spend much more lest her wish was death.

_How ironic that a sadistic girl like Azula values her own life as if she is afraid of the prospect of Death when she torments other both psychologically and physically – truly ironic._

…………………………………………………………..

Thirty minutes earlier, Katara and Toph had settled the argument, surprisingly yet to the liking of Sokka who received extra snooze time. Toph ultimately agreed into holding off all travels in best interest for Aang whose injury needed time and rest.

Under the moonlight, the girl sat silently, imagining the billows of smoke rise upwards from where Azula's tank-train's vibrations emanated from. Toph couldn't help but wonder what the fire-nation princess was doing; the train wasn't in motion coming for them, it simply held its ground.

_Maybe she forgot about me…_

_No, no, that couldn't be it…_

_Then, what…_

Whatever it was, Toph wasn't going to complain about it; she valued whatever time she had left because deep down inside…

_It's only a matter of time until **she **would come and everything would be lost…_

"_But there were advantages right…right?" Toph tried to persuade herself to the matter._

_Right._

**Thanks for all the reviews with suggestions, I tried to implement all of them in this chapter or the next. And let me tell you – I had to watch Avatar episodes quite a lot to get the characters right (I hope) and the theory correct (I hope.) **

**Unfortunately, as you might have noticed, there was no Taang fluff here but what I did offer you was some insight into the "Who killed Azulon" with a theory.**

**You might have also noticed that I never revealed who killed Azulon actually, I only exposed that Ursa came across Azulon's murder and promptly, Azula killed her which still opens a lot of possibilities (but in my mind, I already know who killed Azulon and why Ursa came across his death – in the fic of course)**

**_Props and acknowledgements to anybody who can guess who killed Azulon in this fic and why. The why part's actually pretty complicated; I have the whole thing figured out though, every single thing entwined with each other from "Zuko Alone"._**

**Furthermore, if you really delved into the story (this and the past 3 chapters), you'll probably already know what the plot is and what's going to happen in the climax.**

_**Props to anybody who can figure it out. **_

**Digifreak1028 : Thanks for the compliment in your review. If you would look into my profile, I have posted the schedule for future updates there – they're pretty accurate as I work to meet the deadline.**

**The Blind Bandit : If it's fluff you're looking for then I hope you will be satisfied in the next upcoming chapters – thanks for the review, appreciated.**

**Denisen : Yay, another Taang shipper out there. salute**

**Xnecro : Ah, but as you might have read in this chapter, Katara doesn't know…yet – it'll be interesting and probably challenging to see how everything adds up for Katara and what her reaction will be. Any suggestions from your insightful reviews are welcome and probably used, lol.**

**DancingPickle101 : Oh, I'm sorry to not have made it clear: Toph is going to be used to capture the Avatar, not Zuko. Of course, if you read this chapter Zuko hasn't been captured.**

**Tzy : I'm glad to hear another shipper's comments! Yay for Taang. I entirely agree, there are not a lot of stories in the archive – most are one-shots too.**

**Likesay85 : I'm happy to hear that you think the characters are in-character as that is one of my primary focuses.**

**Demsa : If you don't already know, you can check my profile for future update dates. Of course, those are pretty accurate, although sometimes I deliver earlier if I feel that the chapter is at its best and refined.**

**Tophness : Strange, exactly what I was thinking. Of course, that is how I made it seem.**

**Bodandly : Thanks for the consistent reviews. I always like to know how I'm writing each chapter so as to improve future chapters to your liking.**

**Aheyl : Thanks! I love consistent reviews; they inspire motivation in me to continue writing at a faster pace.**

**Zako Lord of Randomness : Hmmm…Katara does seem motherly at the end of the last episode I watched; I would make Zutara but if only I could find an opening for it.**

**ReckAndCardi : I absolutely agree! Taang very cute.**

**MetalDragonFX : By your review, I assume you're a Zutara fan then? Forgive me if I'm wrong, lol. I am seriously considering putting Zutara in there if it propels the plot – like I said though, I can't find an opening for it!**

**letters of the alphabet123 : I love your penname! It's always nice to see your reviews; I entirely agree with you. Taang also gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling when writing fluff.**

**BloomableBee : I hope you're also looking for plot with the fluff or you might not like this chapter (. Anyhow, Taang fluff more to come!**


	5. Chapter V : Turns of Endearment Pt 3

…**Through Blind Eyes…**

…**Chapter V…**

"**Turns of Endearment Pt 3"**

"…never forget who you are…," mumbled a half-awake boy whom instantaneously fell right back to sleep with nothing on his unconscious mind.

But his body begged to differ. Though he tossed and turned throughout the wake of night, the boy's slumber was undeterred.

"Zu-zu-zu-zu-**Zuko**!" a voice echoed from him afar. Its tone – a plea of help plagued with a tint of command that was a disparity from the serenity around the boy.

The child sprang up promptly as a hint of fear struck him. A shudder of apprehension filled him as a space of silence reigned once more. Yet curiosity masked his trepidation. Zuko timidly crawled out of the safety of his bed and stared down the hallway half-determined to see what was there.

When he realized that there was only darkness among him, the boy shook his head, lying to himself that said voice was merely an auditory hallucination, probably derived from a lack of sleep. Convinced that he had solved the matter, Zuko barely managed to arrive onto his bedside before he collapsed from exhaustion.

"**Zuko!**"

_A ghost!_

Eyes instantly widening to the shriek of his name, the boy shielded himself with a pillow on top of his head, muffling out his hearing to a dull silence but that achieved nothing.

Auditory barrages shrouded his head continuously repeating the same word over and over again, progressively louder.

"Zuko! Zuko! Zuko! Zuko"

_I'm going crazy…I must be._

The voices didn't cease but instead recurred his name in a faster fashion similar to that of a chant.

"**Shut up!**" screamed the boy, covering his ears with his hands and squeezing his eyes shut. There was no voice then.

As Zuko slowly unclenched his eyes to the enjoyable monotony and peace of silence, a disturbing sight came into view. No longer was he within the shelter of the bed covers and pillows but in some forlorn hallway staring at two people – one of which had backed up against a pillar, lying upon the ground vulnerably. The other held a dagger, stained with blood.

Gasping, Zuko realized that the scene took place within his own home, and the blood had originated from two helmed guards who limped against the wall, blood spilled from protrusions in the stomach and head.

"**Please**," begged a woman in the utmost state of fright, "_please_ spare me. _Spare me._ I meant no intrusion. _Please_, _have clemency; have mercy. Please…please…_" Tears streaming down her face and closing her eyes, the woman concealed her mouth with one of her hands, making the sound barely audible. "**_Please, Azula, please. I won't tell a soul, please…please…let me go. I only came to find out the truth – only the truth. Please…please…please_**"

"**Azula! What are you doing?**" shouted the child who was watching from a distance. However, his existence seemed to be ignored to the two.

Zuko, edging closer in caution, attempted once more.

"**Mom!**"

The two figures simply disregarded him as if he wasn't there.

"Azula! Azula! **Please**. **Please, Azula**; I **wouldn't **tell a **_soul_**" wailed the woman as her attacker's blade neared her until finally, it ceased at the position of her neck. With nowhere to run, Ursa closed her eyes, squeezing out more tears. Helpless and vulnerable, the woman never ceased to sob in a pathetic manner.

Zuko panicked. "**Azula, stop!**" He made a fist motioning it toward his sister's face but his punch simply passed through Azula who seemed ignorant to the fact that her brother was even watching her act.

"You're right, Mom, what **_was_** I thinking." Retracting the blade back to her side but not dropping it, Azula backed a step, observing her mother's reactions without a moment's hesitation.

Zuko breathed a sigh, relieved.

The girl smiled a devious smile as her mother's eyes opened slowly as if disbelieving her survival. Azula wasn't one to succumb in pity to cries nor was she a believer of mercy.

"**Thank…thank you…**"

"**But why take your word for it when instead, you never say a word again**," shrieked Azula, retrieving the previous step that she had taken backwards. The blade was shoved forward as Ursa's eyes began to open, penetrating in pupil first.

Ursa and a horrified Zuko alike simultaneously screamed insanely to the dirty assault as the boy swung his fists at his sister hoping that one would impact and stop her madness. Witnessing the newly spilled blood, Zuko's anguish overtook him as he wailed pitifully, tears streaming down his own face for his mother as she was cruelly agonized into death and to the fact that he was at the scene but could do nothing about it.

"**Stop, stop**," begged the boy anyways, knowing that nobody would hear him. His wails were paralleled with Ursa's shrieks of agony as her eye was removed from its socket. Azula paused, watching her mother scream helplessly from unnecessary pain, wishing a swift death to consume her already.

Zuko grew nauseous as his sister's blade pierced the other eye, twisting the dagger deeper as her mother's spilled tears intertwined with blood. The boy's head spun dizzily as he tasted vomit in his mouth, hurling out dinner. His sight dimmed and soon, he could see and hear no more than his mother's begs of mercy and cries. The child-prince, still sobbing, collapsed into a faint.

…………………………………………

"_Your father would never do what to you? What is going on here?"_

"_I don't know…"_

"_It's time for a talk…"_

"_Please, Azula, please. I won't tell a soul, please…please…let me go. I only came to find out the truth – only the truth. Please…please…please_"

"Prince Zuko, Zuko." The voice was familiar and friendly, that much was good.

"Zuko," repeated the voice once more after a few seconds.

_Zuko…_

_Yes…that was my name, wasn't it…_

"Look! The Avatar!" told the voice, teeming with excitement, "We must capture him!"

Zuko sprang right up from his former unconscious state, inhaling a quick but deep breath. "**What? Where?**"

_It was just a dream – a nightmare to be more precise._

There, the prince sat next to his Uncle who had a teapot running at about three in the morning – he hadn't slept at all. How Iroh could sustain such cheerfulness regardless of his exhaustion was amazing.

Iroh laughed, sipping his tea casually. "I knew that would work." Then, in complete seriousness, "Are you alright, Prince Zuko? Have a cup of Jasmine Tea."

"I think so, what happened? Where is Azula; where is she?"

"Azula…" contemplated Iroh for a reasonably appropriate response, "Azula ran off after she attacked you; I was too busy fighting off her comrades to stop her."

In an irritable state, Zuko held his head feeling a slight throbbing in it when his dream flashed back to him. Too disturbed to even lay a thought on it, Zuko stood up independently.

"We'd better get going," as he climbed their stolen ostrich-horse, carrying his pack with him.

"**What!** You just awoke, Prince Zuko; you need your rest. There may be some physical damage from our ambush, perhaps even psychological damage."

"I'm fine, thanks for asking. Now get on."

"Zuko, I know what your sister said to you; you cannot possibly be 'fine' from that; you need rest."

"I've already settled the matter. Sunrise is nearing; we have to get a move on."

"I am amazed by your quick recovery but these things are not so quickly resolved."

Still upon his ostrich-horse, Zuko didn't look back toward Iroh as he spoke.

"Uncle, you of all people should know, what's done is done, sulking about it won't get you any farther."

"Where was that when we didn't capture the Avatar earlier? Zuko, no matter what you decide about the matter, you will have to confront it someday."

"And when that day comes, I'll be ready." The prince gripped his prized dagger in remembrance of his mother, unsheathing a sliver of its blade – he would kill Azula if it was the last thing he did. "I'll be **ready**."

Noticing his hand upon the dagger, Iroh frowned disappointedly and shook his head. He placed his hand on Zuko's, forcing the dagger's blade back into its sheath.

"No, Zuko, didn't you learn anything from your last encounter with Azula? As long as your aggression remains, you will not be able to defeat her; you must learn humility and trust yourself that when the time comes that you should face your sister again, your matter of revenge will not defile your battle."

"Uncle, trust is an echo of faith. Faith is a lie turned inside-out. Aggression grants me persistence and will; what happened earlier was a mistake – I momentarily lost control. That's it."

Acquiescing to his words, Iroh nodded, succumbing to his nephew's perspective as he mounted the ostrich-horse.

…………………………………………

At three in the morning, the cold had suffocated out the life in the vicinity, forcing the inhabitants into a slumber – waiting for a new day to start with the sunrise, when the temperature rose with heat that the wildlife were so dearly fond of. Yet so early in the morning, Aang felt strangely refreshed by the chilling air as he yawned awake, completely energized from his long rest.

"Twinkletoes," said Toph shortly upon his awakening in an expressionless tone. She was still perched at the edge of the precipice from last night, looking out in to the distance. There was a peculiar sense that emanated from her, something that wasn't normal of her.

"Toph? How'd you know I was awake?" The Avatar, happy for conversation, then put some thought into it, "Oh, was it your heightened sense of hearing that detected that I breathed heavier when I awoke or something?"

He grinned in triumph as a silence clouded the gap, certain that Toph was speechless at such knowledge.

"No…you snore kind of loud occasionally."

Blushing slightly, the air-bender was overtaken with embarrassment before he realized Toph had bags under her eyes – perhaps due to a lack of sleep. "…Oh…why are you up so early? Did you even sleep last night?"

"Nope." Her reply was but a simple response; nothing more. Toph seemed a tad out of her usual self.

"Why?"

"I was…" She paused, giving away an awkward silence whilst slightly fidgeting. Then, deliberately and without hesitation, she proceeded with the lie, "...keeping watch. Hey, don't worry about me; I feel fine."

Aang's face features turned from a grin of curiosity to something not quite suspicion but a worried appearance. Taking a seat beside Toph, Aang, too, overlooked the vast panorama before him, but still taking into account that Toph wasn't able to see it. A small but awkward silence came between the two as they sat there – Aang enjoying the view and Toph…well, simply relaxing there it would seem.

But relaxed wasn't quite the right word according to the earth-bender's facial features. On her face were a frown and an overall look of sadness that almost seemed painted on her face – something was definitely troubling her. Aang just knew it; it was written all over her face.

The Avatar sighed loudly, a small tactic to get attention from Toph.

"Toph, if there was something wrong, you'd tell me, right?"

Her feet shifted away from Aang displaying her true feelings, but she masked them with a conflicting and equally vague message. "Sure…of course."

The Avatar, in reply, used his thumb and index finger to gently shift Toph's head so that he could see her face but more so her dulled eyes. It was astonishing how deep he could look into her faded, blind eyes. Things came into a standstill between the two as the air-bender stared deep into Toph's eyes. The girl unconsciously leaned in, her lips naturally edging closer before it stopped half an inch away from Aang's, waiting for his to pull in and complete the kiss.

"Then what's wrong?" whispered Aang as quietly as possible, his eyes never leaving Toph's. A pause held among them showing Toph's insecurity of what to say exactly. She was split into two: telling the unthinkable truth or simply lying it out.

But the girl desired to burst out in confession, owning up to the guilt that had swelled up in her heart; she wanted it out…

**_But she couldn't_**.

"Aaah!" stretched Sokka in a relaxed fashion, who was aroused into life from a rather short but satisfying nap. Stretching his arms and puffing up his chest, "I do feel energetic today. Yes, yes I – mmph"

His speech was hastily interrupted by Katara, who covered his mouth.

"Sokka, ssh!" In a hushed tone, Katara pointed her finger toward Aang and Toph, directing Sokka's attention to the two whose faces (and lips) stood now centimeters apart.

Her brother's mouth was uncovered as he agreed to tone down, "Oh, I see; they do look cute together" Then, in complete immaturity, "Maybe this will make Toph less bossy and uptight."

Katara's face gave a slight twitch as she heard the former, just a trivial one, so that Sokka didn't seem to notice as his eyes fixated temporarily on Aang and Toph.

"What's wrong, Toph?" repeated The Avatar when no reply came. His face held even closer than before to Toph's as the sentiment escalated between them. Their lips briefly touched as his question met no reply; Aang could feel Toph's breath. Suddenly, disrupting the mood in the pang of guilt, the girl drew inches back.

"I _**don't** _want to talk about it, Twinkletoes."

Without even thinking about the matter, Toph earth-bended a stream of dull rocks that forced Aang away from Toph as her head simultaneously shifted away in the opposite direction. Though she wanted the guilt that had anchored itself within her out; she didn't want to talk about **_that_** – not now, not **ever**.

Aang, in slight irritation, stood up and walked away in a dampened mood. His tone wasn't filled with frustration nor was it filled with complete nonchalance – somehow completely balanced in the middle. "You don't always need to be so defensive, Toph…"

The girl realized what she had done only after she had committed the earth-bending, repelling Aang away from a kiss – a surefire way to wreck a relationship that she had longed for.

_Gah, what have I done…it was **Aang** – Aang, the person she had thought about the entire night. Aang – the boy she shared distinct feelings about._

_Aang – the boy she had just repelled. Aang – the boy she…even…perhaps…loved?_

"Aang, wait! I didn't…" Toph stopped in the middle of the sentence, realizing he was no longer present. She hung her head; everything…was so…

_What's wrong with me…_

"Good morning, Aang," said Katara, pretending to be busy with packing. Her voice held perhaps an overly cheerful quality as the Avatar walked sullenly past her.

"Morning, Katara," replied Aang mechanically as he started to pack. Then, briefly pausing in the process, he whispered, "Is something bothering Toph? She seems so…so…well, she seems different lately."

"What do you mean?" Katara looked up at her friend, grinning about something… although Aang wasn't sure what.

"Well…usually she's so headstrong but now she's like…quiet and defensive."

"Aang, you have to give her some space. I mean, she's probably a little bit homesick. Plus she's probably just a little tired and you're on her nerves," suggested Katara who not only smiled wider but even began to hum optimistically.

"No…I don't think that's it." Aang turned back for a glimpse of Toph, independently packing the few things she had. When he turned back around, the Avatar jumped slightly in fright at Katara's wide and a little creepy smile. "Why…why…are you smiling at me like that…?"

"Huh, what, oh, no reason…" Katara forced the smile down a notch as she turned away from Aang to continue the packing process; Aang did likewise. "So what's going on with you and her?"

"With me and who…?" Aang ceased packing, turning back to Katara. Strangely, the water-bender did the same. Her face, instead of a Cheshire smile, was illustrated with utmost seriousness.

"You know who I'm talking about, Aang. You and Toph."

"What? Nothing, we're just friends. Why?"

"I'm your friend too, right Aang?"

"Course, Katara."

There was that smile again – a shrewd smile.

"Then how come you don't give me flowers and give out kisses to me?" joked the water-bender but somehow despite the casual tone, Aang felt it wasn't so casual. In fact, he felt like Katara was examining him with a magnifying class, poking at him whenever she saw due fault.

The air-bender's face had a tinge of red that slowly began to spread throughout.

"Well…if you think I should…but I only have so many Panda Lilies to give out" joked back Aang, giving out an innocent toothy smile to further enhance the effect.

"Look, Aang, all I'm saying is, I don't think Toph's your type. I mean, you're so agreeable and amiable and Toph, well, she's kind of arrogant and sometimes even ornery. I just don't see her as _your_ type. I picture you with somebody more…more… responsible and ambitious, y'know?"

"Right…and that somebody would be…" Aang's face held clueless to what exactly Katara was hinting about.

"Well…somebody you're familiar with – that you trust," implied the water-bender.

"Hmm…" thought Aang for a second, then after a few seconds seeming content and ignorant, the boy's eyes completely widened in surprised disbelief, evidently seeing what Katara had been insinuating all along. "**_Whaaaattt?_**"

"Aang, Katara! Toph!" yelled Sokka as he sat of Appa's saddle watching the two exchange their words but not really knowing what they were conversing about, "Let's go!"

The water-bender left a dumbstruck Aang to join her brother on Appa. Still slightly dazed from his conversation, Aang only barely noticed Toph walking past her, carrying her sack.

_You need to give her some space._

"Toph! Wait up." The Avatar quickly ran up to the girl with a sheepish smile. He looked side to side in a flustered fashion, realizing that both Sokka and Katara were probably observing him. Then, whispering quietly, "I'm sorry about earlier; I won't ever bother you about it again. I'm sorry if I –"

However, he was interrupted as Toph's index finger covered his lips.

"Twinkletoes, you don't need to talk so much; I get it." With that said, the girl leaned in for a kiss that spanned for several seconds which seemed to pass all too quickly. Aang, startled by the shift in Toph's disposition, kissed back not sure what to do about the 'Katara situation'. Disoriented into silence, The Avatar mounted his bison after the earth-bender unable to meet eyes with Katara whom, depicted in his mind, was sending him sharp glares.

…………………………………………

"The Avatar was here," examined a figure, picking up a Panda Lily among the ruins of rocks. A breeze passed by, blowing a single strange of her hair away. Studying the flower and its origination, the figure came into a conclusion effortlessly, whispering to herself, "Panda Lilies don't grow up here…this is the Avatar's."

"Which way do you think they went, Azula?" A silhouette of another person stopped beside her. For the answer, Azula looked unto the treetops, eyes narrowing in thought. It only took a second.

"West and they couldn't have gone very far, but that's not what I'm worried about…," spoke the fire-princess, eyes fixated upon the Panda Lily with malice. Her face creased with hate, crumpling the delicate flower within her hand.

When her hand reopened, there was but charred ashes for remains.

**And thus ends the Three-Parter! You might ask how I arrange the chapters into parts as they might seem quite randomized. It's simply, really. Every section where the gAang are leaving after their destination will end the chapter.**

**Hooray! A sub-objective is derived! Honestly, I was going to make this chapter longer – much longer, in fact. **

**A big Sorry to the people who requested the unfinished Chapter 5 to read over AIM and I told them that it would be longer! But there was something in my plot that wouldn't allow that – you'll see it next chapter.**

**To the answer of "Who killed Azulon", I'm not releasing it until the end of the chapter that tells who. It's not Ursa, if you read this and last chapter carefully which I hope you did. If I'm to make it a surprise, I have to extend the facts slowly.**

**Of course, I'm not going to answer the plot but I think most of you have the right idea. In fact, some of you are spot-on.**

**If you want to be surprised by the plot, I suggest you don't read the Reviewer Replies as they may contain minor spoilers. If you want to read your own just (Ctrl + F)**

**If you would kindly review, telling me what you liked and more importantly, what you didn't like, I would appreciate it! Hopefully, with your advice and guidance, my future chapters will be of much better quality. I actually love reading your suggestions as some of them are quite good ideas that I'll use. Don't hesitate to write a review!**

**Likesay85 – Thanks for the compliments. In fact, the reason it took three days for me to write out Chapter 3 was partly because that the skeleton and sketch of the fight were so hard to do. One of those days, I was in bed reading "The Art Of Lying" (which is great btw) and I'm not even paying attention to the book just sketching out the fight. I'm glad that you thought the fights were creative – it really puts the chapter's work in perspective. I love your reviews, if you should keep reviewing; I shall keep going **

**Zatcher – I'm trying to make the speed which the chapters are released a bit faster. Thanks for the review that you're 'hooked'! I hope you stay in for this chapter as well.**

**ForeverBrokenForever – Thanks! I shall try though the block is tough.**

**Yuffie-Chan2 – I am well aware that the last four chapters have been a lack of fluff. Trust me, the situation shall change! Chapter 4, I agree was extremely angsty – but how to tell the said chapter without angst? I'm sure it would be beyond my skills. I'm up for a challenge but that's pushing it, lol. Thanks for the support though; hopefully you will like this chapter better than the last one.**

**Lightningstrxu – LOL A Luza… HAHAHA. That's very creative of you. If you that one came up as you were writing the fic – you're genius! **

**DancingPickle101 – Thanks, I'm glad you classify my writing as 'excellent'. I'm attempting to refine every single chapter I do. Hopefully, it's paying off.**

**The Blind Bandit – LOL actiony fluff. I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter. I tried not to push Ursa's murder too much. **

**Aheyl – I can't wait until you find out about the whole theory that was based on that one episode; they all click very well in place.**

**Xnecro – Hopefully, you got some of your wishes fulfilled with this chapter. Katara isn't necessarily going berserk over Toph & Aang (I can't picture that), but she certainly is trying to undermine Toph. About your Ursa theory, let me ask you something. Does Ursa seem like one to kill? I mean sure you could refer the turtle-duck scene but does she really seem like a murderer unless it was last resort? To me, she seems more logical enough to find out the truth (which you may have learned from this chapter). And do you think she would even hesitate running off with Zuko instead of killing Azulon? Oh, I might have said too much.**

**They say that Born-Blinds are nearly impossible to cure. Nearly. There is a way to follow upon the deal. You shall see. Another interesting thing to note is that during a NDS (Near Death State), born-blind people can see temporarily. Just a note. Nothing more **

**Mentalhospitalescapee – Believe me, I'm trying to pull the deadlines back. For example, this chapter was due the 31st but instead was pulled to 28th.**

**Sifu Toph – OMG, a very insightful critique. I absolutely love these. First off, let me say that I thoroughly enjoyed your story. Hopefully, I kept Toph in character with this one even though I had to structure her a bit differently due to guilt. The fic is after TFoA, I suppose, but perhaps AU when Sep 15 rolls around. Thanks for reviewing! I really appreciated your review, first definitive review out of the 149 that I have. Once again, thanks.**

**MetalDragonFX – I wouldn't put anything past that sadistic brat, Azula. It doesn't mean I don't like her. Heck, she's a pretty cool character.**

**ReckAndCardi – Hm, I don't get why people think Ursa killed Azulon. She just doesn't appear to be someone with a heart for murder if you get what I mean. Thanks for reviewing!**

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz123 – I typed it all out! Thanks for the review. Ursa's death was one of the more enjoyable parts of the story to write. Call me cruel but I liked writing differently. Azula dialogue is always fun to write.**

**BloomableBee - salute Fluff is nice too but without plot it would be just kisses – that doesn't appeal to me. Thanks for the compliment. As you might know, 95 of my effort was in the action scenes and sketching it out.**

**Digifreak1028 – 50 correct, my friend. And if you read this chapter you probably know the plot then P.**


	6. Chapter VI : Phobic Fortunata Pt 1

…**Through Blind Eyes…**

…**Chapter VI…**

"**Phobic Fortunata Pt 1"**

From where he crouched up high upon his flying bison, there was but a glare from the blazing sun that had shrouded his sight. A freak heat wave had put the four of the travelers in a completely wearied state with its unrelenting temperature.

The Avatar, sweating intensely, crouched beside the reins, too exhausted to truly mind the bison. Sokka, begging for water every minute or so, slouched against the saddle, overlooking the landscape which had shifted from dunes of sand to endless forests and jungles. Toph, holding her head up with her hand as if in a bored manner, simply sat there without much to do. As for water-bender, she did all she could keeping the group hydrated, sacrificing the bending water as fluid for their bodies.

Coincidentally, as the temperature steadily increased, the moods of the group steadily deteriorated. There wasn't much to be said between the four save the arguments that ensued occasionally.

"You're giving me less water!" accused Toph in a bitter tone as the last bit of water entered her mouth purposefully starting an argument.

"No, I'm not! I'm giving everybody the exact same share like I always do."

"No, Katara, I **know**. Just because I'm blind doesn't mean I can't hear the different sounds of different amounts of water. I **_never_** forget a sound."

"**What?** Are you saying I'm a liar?"

"No, no, calm down. Toph, I'm sure Katara gives you the same amount of water that she gives everyone. And Katara, I know Toph doesn't mean that you're a liar," interrupted Aang whose exhaustion transformed his usual tone into a monotonous, dull quality.

"_No_, that's **exactly**, what I'm calling her" Toph pointed an accusing finger toward Katara still apparently having enough energy to shout, "You give more of your water to that lemur of yours than me."

Mo-mo peeked out from his sleep, obviously awakened by his name. Seeing that the argument didn't really concern the lemur, he went promptly to sleep once more.

"Look, Toph, Aang's right. We're all just a little bit bitter and on each other's nerves because of the heat. Right now, there's no more water left." The Avatar, clearly relieved, slouched back into position.

"Well, that's awfully convenient," murmured Toph under her breath as she crossed her arms, making sure it was just loud enough for Katara to hear. Afterwards, her face clearly showed aggravation but she did her best to restrain herself.

Sokka sighed observing his boomerang in his lap under the baking sun. "Hey, Katara, could I have more water?"

"Sokka, I **just** said I didn't have any."

"Oh, I thought you were lying to Toph," said the warrior, making an inquisitive face toward his sister as if a stare would break down the truth. When all that came back was a paralleled look from the water-bender, Sokka gave up quickly and shortly replying, "Okay."

………………………………………..

"This heat…" stated Zuko, riding his ostrich-horse with his Uncle, "…it's unbearable."

The prince swiped at a few beads of sweat that had slowly trickled down his forehead under the heated judgment of the sun. The Fire-benders rose with the sun and had a slight resistance against abnormally hot temperatures but even so, there was a limit to such ability.

"Perhaps we should stop for a very relaxing rest!"

"No, that'll hamper our progress. We're moving on."

"But I'm afraid that if I am out in the sun any longer, my feet will sweat more making the smell even more unbearable than the sweltering heat," grinned Iroh, pointing to his feet as his nephew respectively grunted in repulsed disgust.

"Fine, we're stopping." The prince pulled the ostrich-horse to a halt, settling near a soft patch of grass nearby. Unloading their possessions, Zuko pinched his nose as his Uncle removed his boots. Sighing in comfort, Iroh wiggled his toes.

"Uncle! How long have your feet been like this…"

"Oh, only for today. My feet sweat intensely under a prolonged heat – it will be best if I get new boots because…" Taking a whiff inside his shoes, Iroh conjured a disgusted face as he tossed the boots aside. "…these smell terrible."

"We're low on supplies; we need food for ourselves and the..." Zuko pointed toward their transportation but strangely finding the spot absent. He finished slowly, "…ostrich-bird."

Then, standing back up to his feet, the prince sprinted frantically over to the spot where the bird should have been, scouting the area. When his perusing effort had failed, Zuko turned back toward his Uncle.

"Uncle! Where's the ostrich-bird?"

Seeing his Uncle shrug in ignorance, the prince realized either two possibilities were present:

One, the ostrich-bird had ran off on its own – an unlikely prospect. Two, their transportation had been stolen right from under their noses. Immediately recognizing what had just taken place, Zuko shot out several fire-blasts from his fists to no-one in particular, seething in anger.

"Worthless thieves! We've been robbed!"

"It doesn't feel so good, does it?" The fire-bender turned back to face his Uncle's question, face showing signs of utmost frustration.

"It doesn't feel so good to be stolen from," repeated Iroh again drilling his point into his nephew despite the angered glare in Zuko's eyes.

"I **don't** need that right now. We'll never catch up to the Avatar now just by walking."

"Do not surrender to despair, Prince Zuko. There is still hope; there must be a village nearby."

"How can you be so sure?"

"I saw a very big volcano from a distance before we arrived here. If I remember correctly, there is a prestigious fortuneteller who lives in a village that has been established nearby. Most likely, whoever stole our ostrich-horse came from that village – we will probably find them there. Now, sit Prince Zuko, we will get there no doubt, but for now, let us enjoy a satisfying cup of Jasmine tea."

Nodding in understanding, Iroh's nephew accepted the tea, sipping it in a peaceful manner next to his uncle.

The village, once they had reached it, didn't seem to be merely a village. In fact, it was a trading commerce with flocking business all around. With each corner turned, there was another bustling row of shops. Every stall that sold something had customers.

"They're not here…" mumbled the prince immediately as he made his first walk around the village, keeping an eye for his ostrich-bird and the thieves who stole it.

His Uncle sighed at his impatience, offering tokens of wisdom that he intended to drill into his nephew. "Prince Zuko; patience – we will find them."

But Iroh was only met with more impatience as the prince shifted his head to and fro, observing their environment for the thieves. When nobody was found, his faith in his Uncle's words seemed dampened as he whispered, "How are you so sure they're here?"

"If they indeed did steal our ostrich-bird, it will only be wise of them to exchange it here for money."

As they turned another corner, their eyes bestowed upon them two haggard men leading an ostrich-bird, evidently looking for merchants to purchase it or perhaps barter a few goods in exchange. Their faces featured an unfathomable greediness as they stopped at each merchant, shaking their head when the apparent offer wasn't good enough. Long minutes were spent while Zuko and Iroh observed the two thieves, haggling with other merchants.

"Very wise…," finished Iroh with a tone that settled between the tone of sarcasm and seriousness.

"And very stupid if they think they're going to get away with it." Zuko gripped the handle of the two broad swords, unsheathing them only a sliver, preparing for an inevitable fight. But once again, his uncle restrained him from his instincts, placing his hand on Zuko's.

"There is a time and place for such things, Prince Zuko." It took some effort in order for Zuko to restrain himself, heaving a deliberate grunt as he sheathed the broad swords back in, obviously somewhat irritated.

"Fine, I'm going to go find water and something to eat and then…" A strange malicious glint shimmered in the prince's eye as he walked off by himself. Hand still gripping the edge handle of the broad swords, Zuko hastily dissipated into the masses, leaving his Uncle behind.

………………………………………..

"Aang, can we **please **stop for a rest? I know, I know, usually I want to get as far as we can to defeating the Fire-Lord before Sozin's Comet arrives but it's **too hot **today," begged Sokka, pleading Aang who was minding the reigns.

No reply came from The Avatar.

"Aang…?"

"There's no need for rest here, Sokka…" The warrior groaned disappointedly and opened his mouth to argue but not before Aang finished his sentence, "…because there's a village right over there!"

The Avatar pointed a finger that directed the group's attention toward a rather large volcano with a recognized village instituted nearby.

"That's…" began Sokka.

"…Aunt Wu's village!" finished The Avatar with appropriate excitement. "Yip-yip Appa."

Toph sighed; she still hadn't gotten most of the people the group had met yet, finding herself asking the same question over and over.

"Who's Aunt Wu?"

"She's a fortuneteller that can predict your love-line and your future. Come on, let's stop there for a rest. It'll be fun."

Spiraling down toward the village, the four travelers stopped beside a community gathering next to the village square. It was a silent gathering, waiting for the fortuneteller to bring news. As Aunt Wu ascended the stage, the village people cheered loudly, ready for the yearly predictions.

"A solid-looking rectangular cloud…there will be lots of rain this year!"

An uproar originated from the audience to the positive reading.

"A daisy flower cloud…hmm…this year shall be a great year for the birth of girls!"

"And lastly, a cumulus cloud with a distinctly twisted nob at the end – the volcano will remain dormant!"

Another uproar came from the crowd as the popular fortuneteller, after bowing, stepped down. As Aunt Wu came down the steps, Katara rushed to meet up with her again with Aang, Sokka, and Toph clearly out of her mind.

"Aunt Wu! Wait up!" cried the water-bender eager for more predictions.

"I can't believe these saps –even my sister! They still believe that Aunt Wu even after we proved her prediction was wrong?"

"Well…technically Sokka…she was right, the village wasn't destroyed by the volcano since we saved them. If Aunt Wu said that the volcano would remain dormant, then she would have been wrong."

The warrior made a disgusted face toward Aang as he said this, obviously still disbelieving the fortuneteller superstition.

A familiar voice shouted from afar as the group walked toward Aunt Wu. "**Aang! Aang!**"

"Meng!"

Toph, standing to the side, as they hugged sighed again. She found herself asking the same question yet again. "And who's she, Twinkletoes?"

"Oh, sorry Toph. Toph, this is Meng. Meng, this is Toph."

"You're…blind..?" Meng observed the earth-bender. Aang stood behind Toph, shaking his head frantically, signaling that she was going down the wrong road.

"Yea…what about it…?" Toph's voice was gruff and harsh. Not only shaking his head now, Aang began to wave his hands to get Meng's attention who finally noticed them.

"Oh, um, nothing, I guess…" The girl was taken aback after seeing Aang's wild gestures who sighed in relief. "So…what are you here for, Aang?"

"Nothing really – just for a rest from the heat after flying on Appa. Toph's my earth-bending teacher and I think she might want to get her fortune told to her."

"Fortune…told…?" A sense of fear struck her as she backed away filling her feelings with a lie, "No thanks, Twinkletoes, I don't believe **those **kind of things."

"Good choice, Toph," smiled Sokka, happy to have somebody who didn't believe in fortunetelling superstition too. But there truth was, Toph did believe in it – she just didn't want to be told…what she probably already knew…

"Come on, Toph, it'll be fun!" Aang took her hand, attempting to lead her to Aunt Wu but the earth-bender stood her ground, immobile.

"I already said 'no'." Swatting Aang's hand away, Toph turned her head away, recalling what the air-bender had told her before.

"_I'm destined to be with her."_

"_What!"_

"_The Fortuneteller…she told Katara that she would marry a powerful bender."_

A slight indecision came between Toph and her fears, curious to know what her own love-line was. Yet, she had already decided.

"_Besides, I don't **want **to know what my fortune is…" Toph reminded herself._

"I think…" Aang's face lit up after hearing those two words hoping that she would comply, "I'll go and take a walk around here." With the finished sentence, The Avatar's smile reversed to a frown.

As Toph walked away, the air-bender attempted once more to convince her. "Come on, Toph!"

But it was met with a hasty "No." as the earth-bender continued walking.

"Toph, wait up!" The air-bender hurried over to walk with Toph, leaving his warrior friend behind alone.

"Well…" Sokka stated to himself realizing Meng had gone elsewhere whilst kicking a small rock that ricocheted from a wall and hit him squarely in the head, "Ow."

Aang had been sprinting past shops and stalls, yelling out "Sorry" every time he bumped in one stranger or another in search for Toph who seemed to have dissipated away into thin air.

"Toph! Toph!" The Avatar yelled a couple times after he came back to his original tracks coming back to square one.

"Toph!" shouted Aang again as he passed by a seemingly deserted store, either closed or abandoned. It wasn't long until he was ambushed and dragged into the forlorn stall with a hand masking his mouth, preventing any noise from coming.

Voice muffled, the air-bender squirmed around temporarily forgot about his bending powers, simply determined to see the ambusher was.

"Toph?" A confused look upon the boy appeared, neither knowing whether this was a joke or simply what the earth-bender was doing.

"Shh!" swiftly replied Toph, pointing towards the nearby vicinity directly across from the two. Turning around to see what the girl was directing his attention to, Aang saw a figure.

"Could I get some water and some hot food?" The prince stopped in front of the stall, offering a few coins for the supplies.

"Sure, sure." The shopkeeper nodded, turning back to get the supplies as he pocketed the coins. Rummaging his inventory, the man seemed to start some sort of small talk as even Toph's heightened sense of listening didn't manage to pick up on the incoherent conversations going on.

"We have to find Katara and Sokka and get out of here!" whispered the air-bender, maintaining his voice into a hushed tone. Making a move to stagger onto his feet, Aang's arm was met with a force, pulling him back down into their hiding place.

"Uh, Aang, we **just** got here. Plus, I'm sure Katara and Sokka can look after themselves. This place is huge, according to the vibrations I'm feel; there's **no** chance that this Zuko guy will even find them."

"Why even take the risk? Let's go." Another attempt was made as the Avatar air-bended himself back up to his feet, promptly glancing at the stall to see if Zuko and his uncle were there.

"Well, you go ahead Twinkletoes. **I'm** going to have my own little adventure." Lifting herself back to her two feet, Toph motioned to leave, smiling from her fifth sense that had told her the air-bender felt torn between the two decisions. Proceeding her advancement, she was abruptly with the vibrations of the air-bender's feet next to her, notifying her of his presence.

"You're right; I guess I was just… paranoid…" The Avatar, seeing as there was no convincing Toph decided to trust her judgment, accompanying the girl on her "adventure". It was a risk he supposed he could take after all.

"Of course I'm right, Twinkletoes… Now where should we go first; somewhere with lots of rocks and Earth." The girl smiled not only for her plans but for the air-bender who was clueless to the fact that Toph's heart beat several paces faster when he stood next to him inconspicuously representing her feelings for the boy. Inconspicuous was the keyword – she was Toph, the tough earth-bender, not some sappy girl who harbored feelings for certain boys.

………………………………………..

"So then!" joked a man to his company, gambling with dice. It was a bony man laughing a boisterous chuckle as he told his story to anybody who was willing to listen. Continuing to shake the dice, the man continued his story with an unkempt voice, noisy and oblivious to the traders who walked past him, wincing in agitation as they passed by, "I snatch th' bird righ' from under the guy's nose! He didn't even notice! Whadda sap!"

Another loud guffaw came out as he threw the dice, evidently the predicament that had occurred extremely amusing. Whilst laughing, he slapped the ostrich-bird upon the back, causing a loud croak from the bird which promptly bit the man back. Almost at once, his noisy hubbub of laughter turned into grumbles of anger as he prepared to strike back the bird. Seemingly undaunted to its newfound master, the bird stood its ground, not even so much flinching at the assault.

As the fist came down, it was hastily intercepted at the wrist, immobilized in another's firm grip.

"What th'…?" Obviously in a mixed state of confusion and anger, the man's face turned furiously red and he spat out words, "Whattya doing! You have no right! This is my bird! Let go! Wait till I call the guards on you! Let **go!**"

At that moment, the man shifted his face toward Zuko, realizing that the "sap" he had referred to earlier was back for his stolen bird. Beads of sweat slid down his forehead not sure what to make of the situation.

"You have something that's mine." The prince said it slowly and deliberately as if to enunciate each word to its clearest precision. On the contrary, the other man did the exact opposite – sputtering out a mix of fragmented sentence, some flat out lies.

"Whyouhavenorighit'smine! Youcan'ttakeit it's – what, im outraged of the insinuation – you can't do this!" were some of the things that Zuko could make out from the string of period-absent sentences.

Not wishing to make a scene from the matter, Zuko kept his Uncle's words in mind. There was only one thing he could do.

"You have something that's mine. Give it." The fire-prince extended his hand toward his ostrich-bird attempting to draw it back to him but the other man swatted it out of the way, lifting himself to his feet as if to draw himself to a bigger size for intimidation matters.

"Y' trying to start something there?" Exacting his posture, he stood up to Zuko about six or seven feet tall.

"No." It was a simple, dull reply but it was met in an entirely different fashion.

"Good! Then get out of 'ere!" With that said, the man shoved his hand forward, attempting to push Zuko back but it never made contact; it was cut off at the wrist. A minute bit of steam rose from the man's wrist as small fire-bending made contact simply a caution warning to the man that Zuko was a fire-bender. Letting go, the prince made for the reigns but not before an assault came into light.

"Y' threatening me?" A fist came toward Zuko and just as quickly, it was knocked out of the way as the fire-prince pulled out his two broad swords, pinning the man in a guillotine or scissor fashion against the wall. From that, the man instantly reversed from an angered state of assault into a pitiful fearful.

"You're th' Prince Zuko! Heir to the throne? Son of Fire-Lord Ozai? Please don' kill me! I didn't know! I didn't know! Please spare my life. If y' do, I can tell y' what y' wanna know! I know 'ere the Avatar is! Yes! I've seen him pass by! I know where he is! He's in this city! I can tell y' where! **If you let go**!" Zuko had no intention of killing; it wasn't in his nature to hurt needlessly and flaunt his power unnecessarily. He just wanted his ostrich-bird back but the man's offer had been too appealing to resist so he played along.

Simply nodding his head in unspoken agreement, Zuko released the man from the guillotine position against the wall and mounted his ostrich-bird appropriately. On the other hand, the thief was still shaking in fear, hastily guiding him to the Avatar.

………………………………………..

The two of them had been through most of the village, meandering and weaving through the area, joking, laughing around and keeping a light-hearted manner but at the same time keeping a level head for Zuko. For Aang, it was just another simple stop in his travellings but for Toph, it was much more.

_How long has it been since I've done this?_

Finally, legs just a little bit wearied, they stopped their exploring, settling near a rocky isolated area in the midst of no disturbances. There hardly seemed to be any sign of civilization in the vicinity which was remarkable to due how near it was from the village. With that said, it yielded a comfortably serenity but not so tranquil as for Toph to feel uncomfortable in the sense that something demanded her to break the silence – it was exactly how she liked it. The two emerged shoulders touching and the occasional, bumping of hands in which Toph didn't seem to notice or care and Aang well, his face blushed furiously.

They say that the first sign of romance originates from just one simple walk together. Proven, that was the case.

"Today was…well…today was fun." Toph spoke tenderly, an uncharacteristic manner of hers, one that Aang hardly knew she was capable of after his earth-bending lesson. It seemed all too out of her common attitude to say something like that.

The two settled in the area, sitting quietly among themselves as a silence passed by. Toph, laying on the ground nonchalantly, found herself doodling with earth-bending in a relaxed fashion. There was a light-hearted manner in the matter, the doodling, the stillness of its entirety.

Toph sat up, slightly grinning, turning her feet toward the relaxed Avatar who was just enjoying the serenity of it all. Yet then subsequently, she shifted her back to the boy, knowing it was out of her own character and embarrassed by that fact.

"I know I haven't said it enough…" The girl chose her words carefully, as if sidestepping a landmine – the landmine of a full blown 'I love you'. "…but you're the only person who really…treats me as an equal…what I'm trying to say is…thanks. And when I think about it…I…"

When the girl realized that what she had truly been doodling was a small carving of lightning, she gasped, instantly earth-bending it away, entirely obliterating.

_When I think about the things I'm going to do…I…I…_

Toph then in her position, swiftly turned a 180 and embraced the Avatar in an expected hug with her eyes quickly watering. She held the boy tight as if in another moment, he would be lost; everything would be lost. A few sniffles came out as she hugged with a very surprised Aang that at first, held his arms out in the open but gradually hugged back, encompassing his hands around Toph.

It wasn't the uncharacteristic hug that was so unexpected or the slight crying or the sniffles. No, it was a combination of all three. Toph, the Blind Bandit as Avatar Aang had known, wasn't like this.

She wouldn't cry; crying was the last thing the air-bender would expect her to do. It seemed all too preposterous for the Blind Bandit to unveil such a sensitive side.

Yet somehow, here she was, crying her eyes out in the shelter of his arms. Something had to have been desperately wrong…

"Toph…what's wrong…?" mustered out Aang whose heart felt slightly broken, seeing his teacher, his companion, his comrade, no, his **friend**, in such a broken-down, state. Just an hour ago, she had been herself, rebellious and snappy…but now…what truly had gotten into her?

The girl shook her head sadly a few times, groaning. She wasn't sure what was wrong…she, after all, took the offer…she, in deciding the choice, had freedom, something that proved invalid to her from her family. But now, it all seemed so grim; there was no way out. It was like an incarceration without bars, something far worse than what she had ever experienced before.

Aang, withdrawing from the hug, stared into her head on, determined to find out the truth. Toph, not really caring where her head stood, shifted it to where it should have went with her feet – directly in front of Aang's.

"Aang…if I…if I told you…" The girl drew closer; it pained her to be so vulnerable in front of the Avatar when she stood her own ground and carried her own weight. She was Toph, sturdy and strong as most earth-benders were – for exterior attacks that is…

"An ambush! Aang -" The earth-bender too entranced within the moment had only barely received the vibrations for the incoming assault. It was all too late.

Halfway into the sentence, Aang committed the remaining distance between them, lips locking for a good few moments…

…before a fire-blast interrupted them, scalding them just a bit from such unexpected ambush.

"Let's go!" The Avatar took Toph's hand, whispering in a slightly panicked fashion. "Grab on to me; I'll fly us out."

Aang's immediate idea when encountering Zuko was to flee. As an air-bender, that was only a natural train of thought. Although for Toph…things were a bit different. Even in such a previous different state of mood, the earth-bender held her ground, stubbornly refusing to run from battle.

"No way, we can take him. It's two on one as far as I can tell." A familiar figure appeared from behind making his way up to the two from the trail. Preparing her fighting stance, Toph eagerly awaited battle with an indecisive Aang still with his glider flipped out.

Dead serious, Zuko held his position, breathing in deep breaths.

"What are **you** doing? Meditating before battle as preparation! Ha ha ha! Whenever you're ready!" taunted Toph, patiently waiting for her opponent's next move. Focus on the vibrations of the Earth, there was something just a bit weird about her adversary's battle stance…she had seen it before…

"_Well look at this. Enemies and traitors all working together. I'm done."_

A…lightning-bender's stance?

It hit her all too late – physically hit her. A fierce crackle of electric charge issued from the fire-prince's fingertips, striking Toph squarely in her shoulder.

Her "sight" was useless here…

Zuko waited the earth-bender out, not damaging her while she was still absorbing the first blow. With luck, she would back done and needless fighting could be prevented.

"The Avatar" That was all. Zuko looked down on a slightly injured Toph who Aang sat beside, still insecure about whether to join the fight or...

But the earth-bender pushed her air-bending friend away, determined to suck it up. She wouldn't back down – no, never.

_The reason I got hit was because I was surprised at his stance. That's all._

"Hurry up and hit me with all you've got! Unless you're scareedd. I'm ready when you are!"

There was a slight temper to Zuko's next attack as he lashed out three or four strikes at the earth-bender. Yet all was negated through a stone shield. Aang still stood by in the midst of it…but finally deciding to join the battle, he was met with Toph's stubborn voice.

"No, Twinkletoes, I'll take care of it. It's my battle."

With that, the air-bender backed off, worryingly watching the fight as Toph and Zuko exchanged rock and lightning.

And with each strike through Zuko's fingertips, the earth-bender could only barely evade.

_She's blind. She must "see" through the vibrations in the Earth…_ The fire-bender had finally clued in. Smirking as if victory had already been achieved, Zuko suddenly halted his attacks and in curiosity to the matter, Toph did likewise.

"What's the matter? Stopping for your meditation? Ha ha ha."

"No." With that said, the fire-prince jumped solely into the air, allowing himself another smirk at Toph's confused expense.

"Where'd you go…" mused Toph to herself, shifting her head side to side.

When Zuko landed, the earth-bender immediately sent out a sharp rock which promptly met with an evasion of jumping.

_She can't see where I am when I jump but she can probably predict where I land. That won't matter, though._

Another crackle of electricity pulsed and emitted from Zuko's fingertips as he was airborne. It hurtled through the air to an unsuspecting Toph; there had been no vibrations to notify her of the incoming assault. And when the fire-bender had landed…

"There you –" It was only her ears that gave away the assault but even then, it was all in vain for such method was too late – the strike had landed its blow already, impacting Toph back. The attack had been too swift to see where it had landed but it certainly seemed to have drained all of Toph's energy.

She never got back up.

"Toph!" cried Aang who had been watching the fight for some time, taking steps to aid his earth-bending friend in the fight…but he knew Toph wouldn't let him. He reached an impasse in respecting his friend's health or his friend's trust that she would beat her adversary.

"Toph!"

Zuko stood, secretly astonished at the destructive firepower of his lightning-bending. A few fire-bending blasts wouldn't ever yield such effect. But his mission was the Avatar not to dwell on the damage he delivers, even if he may have seriously wounded his enemy. There was no time for pity; the fire-bender took another stance.

There was a bizarre feeling that surged through Aang. No longer did he feel divided for fight or flight. There was but one thing that came upon his mind and one thing that his instinct dictated him to deliver. His tattoos glowed; the arrows emanated a white aura. A tremendous upsurge of power was bestowed upon him.

"**Toph!**"

Several airbending blasts toward Zuko and then, his consciousness temporarily was lost. A divine control and instinct raged throughout him and took over. He was in The Avatar State.

**Oh good, I'm finally done with this chapter – just finished it with sleep deprivation creeping up on me. This has been a long chapter, at least for me – not in writing but in the thinking-out process, carefully minding the plot and her character.**

**To me, Toph seemed quite out of character and you may think it too but I partly did it on purpose. The thinking behind that is that anybody is always penetrable under the watchful eye of guilt. It changes people (at least that's how I see it). So although it is necessary for further plot development, it is also logical thinking to display Toph that way.**

**But yay, Toph was back to her own self before the end of the chapter.**

**So please review and tell me what you think of this chapter. Better than the previous chapters? Worse? And please tell why! It frustrates me to no end when people say (so and so) was OOC and doesn't tell why. **

**Anyways! I'm hopeful for some reviews on how the chapter's doing so that the next part will be more to your liking! Thanks!**

**Lightningstrxu – I am aware of that fact. Unfortunately…I can't imagine how Iroh's actor will be replaced. On the other hand, Book Two has been completed already…I don't know about Book Three.**

**Petitio Principii – I'm glad that you think so. Hopefully, this chapter will be of the same opinion!**

**MetalDragon FX – Undoubtedly, Toph is going through some…struggles to say the least. Guilt can change a person. Earth-benders are sturdy and strong at the exterior at least…**

**ReckAndCardi – Nope! That leaves only one person…hmm…**

**Yuffie-Chan2 – It won't take a backseat but I guarantee you there will be some bumps in the road there.**

**Dragon Jadefire – Unfortunately, I'm not a Zutara fan. I don't hate the ship but at the same time, I don't like it either. I really don't care for it. You know, if Katara wakes up one day and decides she likes Zuko, then that'd be that.**

**Xt0ph – Thanks for the review! Another Taang shipper ftw!**

**Zatcher – Progressively, there will be more! I promise.**

**Evilchik – Lol, I see you're a fan of the triangle. Well the triangle's solidifying soon.**

**Black-Tailed Rattlesnake – Haha, thanks for reviewing! Appreciated. I see your triangle is one edged (I hope that made sense lol)**

**Silver Shadow 75 – Indeed, you've landed spot-on! Thanks for the review!**

**Dianarules55 – Thanks for reminding me. Although I always viewed the Swamp as in "Aang will meet Toph", I am going to address the matter…in a dream sequence! Woop Woop!**

**Dan Heron – I've already addressed your insightful review in a PM! I hope you stay in for this one for more pointers.**

**Sifu Toph – Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad that your opinion remains the same and I'm sorry this story took a little while to develop.**

**Denisen – Thanks! I appreciate your view! Here's the next chapter!**

**Likesay85 – I have implemented your suggestion in this chapter! Thanks!**


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